Notting Hell

This book has been on my shelves so long I am unable to remember what there was in the catalog description that could possibly have encouraged me to buy it; I rack my brain, I read the description on the book itself; no use. I have no answer. And having read it, I still ask myself, Why? Reading the blurbs on the back, it is clear the blurbers were totally enthused about the book. Is it possible I am wrong? Or do I just have different standard for "deliciously witty"? True, there are some great one-liners, and a few passages that truly sing, but for the most part, it is ordinary, pedestrian writing with totally uninteresting and unlikable characters. It seems the author may have been trying to skewer the noxious culture of wealth that show more pervades the Notting Hill set, but it's hard to see that in her writing, which seems to be trying to get you to sympathize with the plight of spoiled wives who turn their children over to nannies so they can do the hard work of "health and beauty maintenance" - in short, yoga, Pilates, and strange dietary customs at Whole Foods stores. If the author was trying to skewer this society, she is not a strong enough writer to pull it off. She should perhaps review the works of G. B. Shaw and Somerset Maugham, who did manage that successfully. Overall, I wish I had aborted the book when I realized it wasn't going to be good, and was still close enough to be beginning that I felt I could justify it, rather than rushing to get it finished so I could move on to something more satisfying. show less

Bitchy,witty comedy of manners about the rich denizens of Notting Hill in London as they live now. Rachel Johnson knows whereof she speaks and has cleverly disected the lives of the Yummy Mummies, trustafarians and big city earners. A great book to read on train or plane, but might not seem so funny to non British readers.

Good chicklit! Having lived in England, some of this is so recognisable! The book deals with the lives of some very rich people around an enclosed garden. They just love to spend money for no good reason, and queue up, just like us lowlives, but they queue in expensive health food shops. On the other hand, the chauffeur picking up their husband, spends up to an hour double parked near the front door, so the husband, when he is ready to leave, does not have to wait a single moment. That sort of thing. Meanwhile adultery is rife as well as the betrayal of friends.

Een soort ironische chicklit, een luchtig tussendoortje. Wel grappig om te lezen maar wat mij betreft wat aan de dikke kant, had wel wat bondiger gemogen. Het zal me niet lang bijblijven, vermoed ik.

Witty and real, funny but dramatic, Johnson will give you a taste of what is like being rich (or being in the right place at the wrong time!).

The cover of the book misled me into thinking that this would be a super cute and fun book to read; but I’m sorry to say this, it’s not. I thought it was going to be like Bridget Jones, but it wasn’t. There’s a communal garden (like the Julia Roberts “Notting Hill” movie) and everyone is cheating on everyone else, and I don’t know who is talking and I just got lost. Ultimately, it’s a rather depressing book about nothing, to which I have lost interest. I have 5 chapters left, but I’ve put it down, and I don’t know when I’ll pick it back up.

Good story slightly ruined by the mistakes in the print. It didn't seem to have been proof read before being sent off to the printers!