Catching Up, Part I: Emily Giffin's Something Borrowed

I clearly have a lot of catching up to do. In an earlier post, I talked about rediscovering what I liked about reading when I started reading Kindle books on my phone. Since then, I've discovered that I have been *way* out of the loop, pleasure reading-wise, and I'm trying to catch up. This week's catch up has been Emily Giffin's Something Borrowed, which came out in 2005 and --wow, how did I miss this?--was made into a movie with Kate Hudson.

The movie isn't particularly good, despite having a great cast, and feels flat, but the book is an absorbing read. Giffin draws you in right from the beginning with the tension between Rachel and Darcy. The jealousy that Rachel feels, as well as Darcy's characterization as self-centered and attention-seeking, is believable. Giffin offers a clear picture of how competitive "friendships" can be, and she hints at the insecurities behind Darcy's treatment of those around her. Giffin plants the possibility that Darcy's need to put Rachel down stems from her own sense of failure: she didn't get into Notre Dame, Ethan didn't choose Darcy over Rachel, etc.

At a certain point in the book, though, Rachel's anger toward Darcy becomes a little weird. It's not surprising, especially if Darcy has been using her as a way to make herself look better all these years, but it's not clear that book means for Rachel to seem as spiteful as she does. What I mean by that is that the logic of the novel seems entirely weighted toward supporting Rachel's side of the story, and Rachel gets the prize at the end as the ultimate validation. There doesn't seem to be an element of the story that questions Rachel's anger, only her passivity. And Darcy is ultimately shown in the most monstrous light possible, likewise validating all of Rachel's feelings. It feels a little one-dimensional in this way.

As for the infidelity plot, which many of the reviewers on Goodreads found unacceptable, I'm bothered less by it than many readers. I think that's because the story is about deciding not to make the wrong decision, rather than cheating once the decision has been made. Sure, Dex and Rachel should have been more honest with Darcy, but this particular fictional universe doesn't leave much space for that. It is striking that the movie tries very hard to mitigate Dex's waffling between Darcy and Rachel by creating a drama about his mother and about his wishing he pursued a different career. In the book, he took the unusual and decisive course of choosing not to pursue law and return to the business world. The movie Dex is much less in control of his own life.