Saturday, September 5, 2015

STORY OF MY LIFE BY Jay McInerney

Finished We 9/2/15 (first read and finished Tu 6/4/02)

THE THREE BIGGEST LIES-

1) The check is in the mail.

2) I won't come in your mouth.

3) I love you.

Because nearly all of the characters are deluded and are absolute strangers to truth, this rather cleverly twisted bit of morality is important to the story line,  and Alison Poole, the narrator, cannot remember the last 'lie' until the end of the book.
Alison Poole is based on a real person known by the author.

Rebecca- out of control older sister

Carol- youngest sister; lives with mother and is the most sane of the family

Francesca- 'The dessert card stops here'

Jeannie- has known Alison the longest. They rode horses together as children. (Alison's father killed her horse to get the insurance money. This might have happened and Alison feels that this is when things started to go wrong in her life). Jeannie is the only friend of Alison's who has a job

Dean- boyfriend of Alison. Stocks and Bonds trader

Skip- ex boyfriend

Didi- drug addicted friend, yet ravishingly beautiful

This is the kind of novel most people would say doesn't work because none of the characters were so morally reprehensible that it is impossible for the reader to identify. I agree, but I felt people like this really do exist, and I could very easily accept the story and characters as real.

I liked the book and it was an easy and interesting read.  A nice subtext on the Reagan Era. (Greed Is Good, Me First)

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