Romantic Comedy
By Curtis Sittenfeld
- Genre
- Romance & Contemporary Relationships
- Publisher
- Random House (Penguin Random House)
- Publication year
- 2023
- ISBN
- 9780399590948
Sally Milz, a jaded writer for a live late-night sketch-comedy show, is skeptical when a pop superstar guest-hosts and seems to fall for her, defying her theory that only mediocre men date up. Curtis Sittenfeld's novel, a Reese's Book Club pick, examines romance, fame and self-worth. It was a...
Sally Milz writes for a Saturday Night Live-style sketch show and has a pet theory: ordinary, even schlubby men routinely date dazzling women, but the reverse never happens. Then a charming pop megastar guest-hosts her show, appears to be genuinely interested in her, and forces Sally to confront her own defenses. Curtis Sittenfeld - the literary novelist behind Prep and Rodham - brings her sharp social observation to the romance form, using the backstage world of live comedy and, later, a pandemic-era epistolary courtship to interrogate gender, celebrity and the stories women tell themselves about who is allowed to be loved. It is a rom-com with genuine ideas, wry and clear-eyed rather than saccharine, and its insider comedy detail is a delight. Some romance readers may find it cooler than the genre standard; literary-fiction readers will find it unusually warm. A Reese's Book Club pick and bestseller, it is smart, adult and quietly romantic - a crossover in the best sense.