Girls in White Dresses

Jennifer Close

Aug 2011 · Sold by Vintage

About this eBook

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • An “addictive, thoughtful” novel (Entertainment Weekly) that brings us through the thrilling, bewildering years of early adulthood while pulling us inside the circle of three friends, perfectly capturing the wild frustrations and soaring joys of modern life.

Isabella, Mary, and Lauren feel like everyone they know is getting married. On Sunday after Sunday, at bridal shower after bridal shower, they coo over toasters, collect ribbons and wrapping paper, eat minuscule sandwiches and cakes. They wear pastel dresses and drink champagne by the case, but amid the celebration these women have their own lives to contend with: Isabella is working a dead-end job, Mary is dating a nice guy with an awful mother, and Lauren is waitressing at a midtown bar and wondering why she's attracted to the sleazy bartender.

Ratings and reviews

What a book - this book is so good, I am putting it on my shelf to read again, that never happens! A collection of a short stories or a book with characters weaving in and out - I don't know or care how you call it, it was excellent. As a girl who finds herself right in the thick of this book, I found my friends amongst her characters and even found myself in some of the same situations. I think this is why I fell so much in love with this book because I could completely relate to all of the characters. I enjoyed that each chapter involved a few of the friends, but you saw them again in another chapter. So yes, maybe it was a collection of short stories, but because you saw the characters again, I think it is a book where each chapter highlights a different character. I will not divulge any details - because this is a must grab, purchase it quickly. I will be buying this book in bulk for my girlfriends - I know they will love to read about us at the time we are right now in our lives.

Maybe I'm not the target audience for this book, being 20, but I though it was too choppy without a story line. I don't care if a novel has a happy ending, but this was way too random for me, and I couldn't remember which character was which. I didn't feel a connection to the book or its characters, and I've read it twice. I hate giving anything one star, but it really didn't appeal to me.

Warned me & I still ignored it

About the author

Jennifer Close was born and raised on the North Shore of Chicago. She is a graduate of Boston College and received her MFA in Fiction Writing from The New School in 2005. She worked in New York in magazines for many years and then in Washington, D.C., as a bookseller. Girls in White Dresses is her first book.