2011: Book 29

Blue Angel by Francine Prose


314 pages

Completed 3/23/11

When I saw that this novel was described as "hilarious," and told the story of a professor finally tempted by a student at the worst of times at the university, I was in. But honestly, without a better word, this book was stupid. Preening in the loving relationship with his wife of many years, a professor who is lackadaisical about everything school related is suddenly attracted to a pierced, goth, annoyed non-contributing student. He barely does anything, vaguely mentions issues with his college-aged daughter, which are never fully made clear, and ignores his own novel's deadlines.

This terrible story goes on with the professor falling for the student's sexual - albeit weird -poetry, and an even odder novel she is penning. Eventually he has to face a court of his peers on sexual harassment charges, and his lack of any explanation, defense, or caring is annoying. The ending? Stupid. The lack of anything clear throughout? Stupid. Don't waste your time on this one.

2011: Book 27

Ivy League Stripper by Heidi Mattson


288 pages

Completed 3/19/11

A feminist take on stripping - irony at it's finest. I am a fan of scandalous memoirs, but Mattson's holier-than-thou approach to stripping annoyed me. Having to take three years off of her undergraduate work at Brown University, Mattson finally comes to the conclusion, after several missteps and other considerations, that the best option for her is to join the staff at a topless bar. Expecting quite the story after this turn of events, I was disappointed when Mattson constantly wrote of being above the influence that the other girls' were under, introducing herself as a stripper and being okay with it while internally conflicted about telling her parents, and bashing her undergrad institution.

While her stories of night stripping were amusing, and the woes of the other girls heartbreaking, what stuck with me the most (and bothered me the most) was Mattson's view on the men. She repeatedly said she "remained friends" with customers, but also stated numerous times that she never mingled work and real life. Understanding the men, she claimed, was why she was so successful. Of course she understood them; she was topless, they were watching. Her "I-know-what's-best" voice simply bothered me.