Sushi for Beginners

Marian Keyes writes pure chick-lit, but with more substance than most. Her characters are three-dimensional and interested more in shopping and boys. She's my go-to choice for vacation reading. This is one of her lesser works, but it's still easy reading despite that.

Lisa's an ambitious editor at a London fashion magazine who has her sights set on New York, but she's sent to oversee the launch of a new magazine in the fashion hinterlands of Dublin, Ireland. Ashling is hired as her new assistant. Ashling feels compelled to help out wherever she sees a need, from handing a band-aid to her new boss to worrying about the homeless guy who sometimes sleeps in the doorway of her apartment building. Clodaugh has been Ashling's best friend show more since they started elementary school. She's got the life she wanted; married to a great guy with two kids and a big house, but she's dissatisfied with the pattern of her days.

Sushi for Beginners follows each woman as they find their way through daily life, struggling with failed marriages, depression and the ups and downs of relationships. While Keyes has written better books (Rachel's Holiday, Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married) this was still fun if you like that kind of thing. show less

Jag har läst flera böcker av Keyes och hon är en författare vars böcker jag gillar, för det mesta kan, bli lite långtråkigt i längden, dock. En bok då och då är helt ok. Sushi för nybörjare är en bra bok om man vill skratta och glömma ens eget tråkiga händelselösa liv. :

In this charming and engaging "chick lit" novel, the author takes three unique women, each with her own demons and desires and throws them together. The characters are captivating and complex; Lisa, the bitchy, stunning, Prada-wearing magazine editor; Ashling, the plain-jane, mousy, overly organized, constantly worrying assistant editor, and Clodagh, the beautiful, unsatisfied housewife who appears to have it all. The novel is set in Dublin and follows the women through an interconnected series of events, with each of their lives unravelling and being pieced back together again. At 530 pages, the book is rather long for this genre, but it keeps pace pretty well. This was fun, sexy, sad, and triumphant all rolled into one, and I would show more recommend it to women in the mood for a good laugh, cry, and everything in between. show less

I don't like the title. That seems like a lame comment, but I feel like it cheapens the book somehow. Or maybe I'm just feeling cranky because the title turned me off the book for a long time, and I ended up really liking it. And no, I don't like sushi.

I had high hopes for this book. I listened to it because I knew it would have wonderful English accents. It is a story about friendship; it is a story about growing up and into your 30's. The realization of knowing that you are changing and realizing it's time to accept the reigns of adulthood, real jobs, and solid relationships. I had a very hard time figuring out who was who. The story bounces around a lot and the women overlap in the book so I think at times I couldn't remember if this was the woman with children, the woman newly moved to the area or just background characters. I am being generous by giving this book 3 stars.

For a while in the late 90's I was obsessed with British Chick Lit. I actually ordered certain titles direct from Amazon.uk because I found I either couldn't get the titles in Canada/U.S. or I preferred the cover art.

Marian Keyes is one of my favorites from my Chick Lit period, and Sushi for Beginners one of her best. The story examines the lives of three women, Lisa, Ashling and Clodagh. I found myself interested in the fate of Ashling most, but I tend to cheer for the underdog.

I know that many a "serious reader" would turn up their nose at the amount of Chick Lit on my shelves but it served its purpose for a particular time in my life. I don't tend to read as many of these types of books these days but I do re-read them from time to show more time as they are a kind of comfort reading to me. show less

Mixed feelings. I hated many of the characters but I was interested enough in the plot to keep reading.

Annoyed by all the cigarette smoking and petty theft. More smutty than most chick-lit.

Wanted to know more about the "sushi for beginners" romance plot towards the end.