Helen Fielding
Bridget Jones's Diary (1998)
Author: Helen Fielding
Genre: Chick Lit
Plot Summary:
Bridget Jones's diary is laid open, and the reader gets to follow along through the course of one year in the life of our 30-something, London-based protagonist. Throughout the course of the year Bridget struggles with dieting, singlehood, her overly-zealous mother (who, for a great chunk of the year, is involved in an extra-marital affair of sorts with a man named Julio), a career change, and the concomitant trials and tribulations of her friends. The focus, however, is squarely on Bridget's love life...or lack thereof. The two main players in this drama are Daniel and Mark. Daniel is the sexy bachelor with whom Bridget has a few racy nights but who is seemingly incapable of commitment. Not only that, he exhibits a character trait that Bridget and her friends refer to as "fuckwittage"--basically a condition wherein men expect women to look 24 forever and to have consequence-free sexual relations with them that can be dropped in a flash. Sadly, women, like Bridget, continue to fall for these men (i.e. Daniel) even though they know better. Mark, on the other hand, is a childhood friend who Bridget, as our story opens, considers a bit too "upper crust" for her sensibilities. He's a wealthy barister considered one of the city's most eligible bachelors--he's also dating a leggy vixen that Bridget despises. The real meat of the story lies not only Bridget's struggle to find love but in her reflections on modern life. Fielding deftly, humorously, and cleverly cuts to the thick of the travails of single 30-something women caught up in a world where appearance means more than substance and everyone is seemingly out for themselves. SPOILER: Bridget finally gets over her feelings for Daniel and, in an ending that seems a bit abrupt given the excellent pacing of the first 4/5ths of the book, ends up with Mark.
Geographical Setting: London, England
Time Period: late 1990's
Series: The sequel to this novel is Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (1999)
Appeal Characteristics:
This book helped define the genre 'chick lit'. It is a humorous look a modern life from the perspective of a 30-ish Londoner. The book's razor wit is sure to appeal to young professional women struggling to find romance in the modern hub-bub of the city; however, I, a married 30-something man, also enjoyed it quite a bit and do not feel that singlehood nor being of the feminine persausion are prerequisites for reading the book. The book has a quick pace--something I attribute not only to the compelling nature of the story, but also to the format, i.e., oftentimes one- or two-page diary entries. Fielding does an excellent job of fleshing out Bridget's character, and, despite the overall humorous tone, Fielding does allow her protagonist moments of thoughtful reflection. The secondary characters--especially Bridget's friends--while somewhat peripherary are excellent foils and sounding boards for Bridget. Somewhat stereotyped, they are still likeable and three-dimensional (is that a contradiction?). A modern classic!
Similar Authors: Marian Keyes's Watermelon or Rachel's Holiday; Candace Bushnell's Sex and the City; Wendy Holden's Simply Divine; Sue Margolis's Neurotica; Anna Maxted's Behaving Like Adults; Sophie Kinsella's Confessions of a Shopaholic; and Nick Hornby's About a Boy
Red Flags: foul language, sexual situations, bingeing on cigarettes, alcohol, and smoothies
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