I delighted in the way Teddy and Everett shared pieces of their true oddball, vulnerable, silly, thoughtful selves. This was a satisfying, often funny, romantic book that hit all the right notes for me.
Teddy Phillips isn't sure how she got to this point in her life. She's coasting in her not-dream job at a vintage toy store, all of her opinions and desires seem to have have been subsumed by her boyfriend Richard's plans and preferences, and she's not close with her best friends or even with her sister anymore.
When others' decisions set Teddy adrift even further, she's forced to consider her life and the person she's become--and determine whether she's capable of change. She finds comfort in watching episodes of her local children's show, and she impulsively writes a letter to the calm, kind, handsome host, starting a correspondence that will shift the course of her life.
Winfrey's Very Sincerely Yours is light fiction that delivers delightful, charming banter, the promise of a new romance for Teddy, and wonderfully loyal friendships.
Her self-esteem has taken a hit over the years because of her unhealthy relationship, and I enjoyed watching her friends--and Teddy herself--push for her to pay attention to what she wants and to stretch herself, considering what might be possible.
But I didn't buy the idea that someone as charming and quirky and self-possessed as Teddy was once she was removed from "Rick the dick"--as everyone around her brazenly begins referring to her disparaging, tedious, selfish ex--would have been so deeply involved with someone Winfrey presents as without many (any?) positive attributes. I would have liked a little more of a gray area where Richard was concerned.
I delighted in the e-mails in which Teddy and Everett share pieces of their true oddball, vulnerable, silly, thoughtful selves. This was a satisfying, often funny, romantic book that hit all the right notes for me.
Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book?
Winfrey also wrote Love and Other Alien Experiences, Things Jolie Needs to Do Before She Bites It, Waiting for Tom Hanks, and Not Like the Movies.
I've been gravitating toward books like this lately, and I need to create another light-fiction roundup. For other light fiction books I've enjoyed, check out the Greedy Reading List Six Lighter Fiction Stories for Great Escapism.