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Posted 20 hours ago

Jane is Trying (W&N Essentials)

£9.9£99Clearance
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With fertility problems, OCD that she refuses to acknowledge, a smidge of trauma and a cheating boyfriend, Jane has found herself in a life she doesn’t understand. I was expecting to really enjoy this book - I like Issy Suttie as a comedian and found her previous book very funny. It passed the time as I painted the spare room but I realised when the final chapter was wrapping up that I was barely listening anymore and was scrolling through to cue up something else to listen to.

Then I read her latest memoir and found out she quite liked Trump when she was on The Celebrity Apprentice, but it was too late. The story of a near-40 year old trying to conceive, being cheated on and moving back to her parents' in the provinces had themes common to many other books I've read. It was easy to pick back up after long breaks from reading and I found myself thinking and Jane a lot; it was gripping to begin with. That’s a tribute to my friend who once genuinely convinced me that it was pronounced “The Ma-goose”. I wish more time was spent on developing the characters so that they didn't feel like one-dimensional, aggravating stereotypes.Seemingly every other line was the setup to a witticism or joke, and I didn't share the author's sense of humour at all. I literally wanted to slap the title character around the face on numerous occasions; not because of her OCD, but because at 38 she's still relying on the bank of mum and dad! I also wanted to jump into the book and scream at how people were treating Jane and how she felt like she had to put up with other people inserting themselves into her life… maybe that’s a sign of a good book?

I really felt Jane's experiences - having to move back home after the break up of her relationship and deal with her parents' - and everyone else's - small town mentality. Other times it was downright irritating and so it was satisfying to see Jane refuse to engage with it. There is a scene in One Day where Em is at a restaurant with her boyfriend, and moans that every menu item is the setup to a joke of his, and that even though he is a comedian, he isn't actually that funny. Some of Jane's musings are so relatable you'll catch yourself laughing out loud, slightly alarmed by the accuracy .

Now, she's trying to make a new start back home with her overprotective, charades-obsessed parents - having left her career and cheating fiancé behind in London. I also enjoyed the ending, and how it didn't exactly follow the predictable ending I was expecting, but instead felt like Jane making some 'happy compromises', which felt like quite a wholesome ending. With a string of television acting credits to her name, including SHAMELESS, WHITES and SKINS, she is perhaps best known for playing Dobby in PEEP SHOW. With an increasing load on her plate, friends and family who think she’ll have a perfect life if she only listens to them, and a brain which questions every decision she’s ever made, can Jane conquer her demons and step forward on her own?

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