Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I know most people would not.
Seidel has long been one of my favorite authors because she is very thoughtful and wise about human behaviors. Her characters are very real and go through an arc of self-exploration and self-discovery that seems true, and their small-scale successes and believable triumphs of the spirit. They make you want to get your own life--or at least your own dwelling--in order and perspective.
Not much happens in this novel of four suburban "soccer moms" and their daughters' entrance into the world of middle school socialization--if we're talking about action. Instead, we see what it means for well-educated, career women to focus their considerable talents on motherhood, how it impacts their marriages and their self-esteem and their priorities, not to mention their concept of themselves as women, wives, and mothers.
The issue of popularity and teenage girls is the ostensible focus, but this tale of manners covers far more ground than you would think. I should note that the title is taken from Jane Austen's Emma, and Seidel is, like Austen, quite the sharp and observant mistress of her little bit of ivory.
I docked the book a star because it is not a book you can wholeheartedly recommend to anyone...not in our action-oriented society. But you don't have to be a mom of a certain class to enjoy it--I am neither--you have to care about insight-driven novels. I do and I loved A Most Uncommon Degree of Popularity, even though it is unlikely that the book will achieve that status.
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