Brooklyn Girls by Gemma Burgess

brooklynBrooklyn Girls
Author: Gemma Burgess
Category: Fiction
Publisher: St. Martin
Release Date: 7-2-13
So what is a recent grad with an art history degree and an unfortunate history of Facebook topless photos to do? Start a food truck business of course! Pia takes on the surprisingly cutthroat Brooklyn world of hybrid lettuce growers, artisanal yogurt makers and homemade butter producers to start SkinnyWheels—all while dealing with hipster bees, one-night-stands, heartbreak, parental fury, wild parties, revenge, jail, loan sharks, playboys, karaoke, true love, and one adorable pink food truck. And that’s without counting her roommates’ problems, too. Gemma Burgess has captured the confusion, hilarity and excitement of the post-graduate years against a backdrop of the pressures and chaos of New York City life, with heartfelt empathy, fast humor and sharp honesty. – Goodreads

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ah, to be in my early 20s, fresh out of college, holding down my first job and worrying about things like rent, designer shoes, and casual drug use.  That is the world of Brooklyn Girls, which tells the story of Pia, who finds herself out of a job, over-educated, under-skilled, and about to be hauled home by her parents.  Pia is determined to make her own way for the first time in her life.  Each girl comes from a relatively privileged background, so their financial struggles weren’t entirely believable to me, but their friendship was a great aspect of the story.  Pia is determined to stay in New York, and her idea to open a food truck will make you hungry. (I was craving a salad by the time I finished the book.)  I thought it captured the way that Brooklyn is changing over from working class families to young people and hipsters, with supporting characters that I found truly interesting.  Bring in a loan shark, an elderly neighbor, and an aspiring actor and you’ve got a book that while perhaps a bit far-fetched in some ways, showed moments of great honesty that gave it depth along with levity.

Overall, Brooklyn Girls was a fun read.  The dialogue was witty and, at times, laugh out loud funny.  While I couldn’t really relate to Pia, she was someone that was fun to read about.  The Lucy-esque scrapes she got herself into were met with mostly starry-eyed optimism.  The dynamic between the girls in the house was a great part of the story.  As I understand it, each girl is gong to get a book and I have already identified a few that I found especially intriguing.  It definitely made me nostalgic for my 20s when my biggest responsibility was paying rent and having enough money to go out afterward.  While you might not find yourself identifying strongly with a group of privileged 20-somethings in Brooklyn, I think that if you are looking for a fun vacation read, you need look no further than Brooklyn Girls.

I received this galley in exchange for my honest review.

Find Gemma Burgess online:
Website
Twitter

signature_exlibris

Kate


46 responses to “Brooklyn Girls by Gemma Burgess

  1. I’ve heard mixed things about this book but it definitely sounds interesting! Yum about the food truck but IDK if I would crave a salad, ha. I think this would be the perfect time to read it in my life because I’m around the same age as them. Great review!

  2. I love novels that can make you feel such a wide variety of emotions, this one sounds great. Especially since it has underlying depth. I’m glad you enjoyed it!

  3. I loved, loved, loved Brooklyn Girls! I thought it was the perfect summer read, plus I could completely relate to the girls in the book. I honestly can’t wait for this series to continue!

  4. I’ve been wanting to read this ever since I heard it compared to Girls. I’m glad to hear you had a good time with it and that it has witty and hilarious. Awesome review! (PS sorry for comment bombing you, I was away all last week and am just catching up on blog reading now :D)

  5. The Absent Game…

    Among me and my husband we’ve owned much more MP3 gamers over time than I can count, like Sansas, iRivers, iPods (traditional & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of players….

  6. Admiring the persistence you put into your site and detailed information you provide. It’s great to come across a blog every once in a while that isn’t the same outdated rehashed information. Great read! I’ve saved your site and I’m including your RSS feeds to my Google account.
    ??????
    [url=http://??????.dgs2.com/coach????-nihon-20.html]??????[/url]

  7. Hey there! I’ve been reading your website for some time now and finally got the bravery to go ahead and give you a shout out from Huffman Texas! Just wanted to say keep up the excellent work!
    ?????? ??????
    [url=http://www.vuitton-japan.com/??????-??????-nihon-13.html]?????? ??????[/url]

  8. Title…

    […]very couple of internet sites that come about to become in depth beneath, from our point of view are undoubtedly properly worth checking out[…]…

  9. Title…

    […]very couple of web sites that happen to be detailed beneath, from our point of view are undoubtedly well really worth checking out[…]…

  10. Title…

    […]Wonderful story, reckoned we could combine a couple of unrelated data, nonetheless definitely worth taking a appear, whoa did a single discover about Mid East has got extra problerms too […]…

  11. Title…

    […]although websites we backlink to below are considerably not related to ours, we really feel they may be essentially really worth a go via, so possess a look[…]…

  12. Wonderful blog! Do you have any tips and hints for aspiring writers?

    I’m planning to start my own site soon but I’m a little lost on everything.

    Would you suggest starting with a free platform like WordPress or go
    for a paid option? There are so many choices out there
    that I’m totally overwhelmed .. Any suggestions? Thanks a lot!

  13. I’m not sure where you are getting your info, but great topic.
    I needs to spend some time learning much more or understanding more.

    Thanks for fantastic info I was looking for this information for my mission.

Leave a Reply

(Enter your URL then click here to include a link to one of your blog posts.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.