Elegance

3.5 stars is more accurate. This certainly isn't great literature, but this is a fun read, mostly I think for women.

Louise is a frumpy American from Pittsburgh, married to a minor British actor, and facing an insurmountable problem in her marriage. When she stumbles across an outdated book on how to achieve elegance, she finds the advice useful in helping her take control of her life and make some significant changes.

As she describes Louise's evolving life, Tessaro begins each chapter with a relevant excerpt from what was a real book titled ELEGANCE. It's fun to see how dated advice from the 1960's actually still retains some relevance today. And Louise's transformation is an entertaining story in itself. Lots of humor. Quite enjoyable.

Louise is a 32 year old living in London with a closet full of shapeless brown garments, romance-free marriage and a job where nobody even notices she exists. One day at a second-hand book store she finds a slim volume entitled Elegance and decides to regain control of her life.

I don't keep books. In fact, I've decided to read everything in my book case and not buy anything new unless the library doesn't have what I want. And on the rare occasion that I do decide to keep a book it's because I've absolutely fallen in love with it. Guess what, about 3/4 of the way through I knew that this one is a keeper.
It hit all the right notes with its combination of humor and sadness, realism, insightfulness and beautiful writing. The language fit show more with the story, the characters were alive and relatable, Louise's best friends felt like your own best friends, when she succeeded to cheer and in the end it left me with a smile on my face. What can be better? show less

3.5 stars is more accurate. This certainly isn't great literature, but this is a fun read, mostly I think for women.

Louise is a frumpy American from Pittsburgh, married to a minor British actor, and facing an insurmountable problem in her marriage. When she stumbles across an outdated book on how to achieve elegance, she finds the advice useful in helping her take control of her life and make some significant changes.

As she describes Louise's evolving life, Tessaro begins each chapter with a relevant excerpt from what was a real book titled ELEGANCE. It's fun to see how dated advice from the 1960's actually still retains some relevance today. And Louise's transformation is an entertaining story in itself. Lots of humor. Quite enjoyable.

Chick lit plus. Using the alphabetical headings from a 1950s book about elegance as a framework, she tells the tale of her failing marriage (exacerbated by her use of the book to transform herself) and her moderately dysfunctional childhood - and indeed, adulthood. The childhood embarrassments are the best described, and something of their tone reminded me of Eugenides' Middlesex. The book seems to lose its spark about a third of the way through and become just another Bridget Jones.

One woman's voyage of self-discovery fraught with love, loss, and low self-esteem spurred by a little book on elegance. Depressed and dowdy housewife Louise Canova finds a slim volume on elegance in a second-hand bookshop and resolves to turn her life around. As she sheds her old lifestyle, she discovers that looking the part is only half the battle. Protagonist Louise must deal with toxic friendships, a failed marriage, and her own deep-rooted childhood insecurities and neuroses; this version of Bridget Jones entertains greater depth and more character development. As her exterior look evolves, Louise deals with a latent eating-disorder, a perpetually depressing therapist, and a loss of comforting self-identity that leaves the show more protagonist whirling through several personality changes that end in something resembling happiness. The writing style is a curious blend of middle class Britishism tempered by classic French aesthetics as pages from Louise’s secondhand copy of “Elegance” are scattered throughout the book. The frank look at the intersection of gender and culture is less than kind at times but never facetious as the female protagonist works her way through its impact on her life. Half a star for occasional gender stereotyping. show less

This charming debut novel will make most women savour the story as they would a box of chocolates. It follows the fortunes of the unhappily married Louise, who finds in a second-hand bookshop an escape route from all that makes her anxious about life: a faded volume entitled Elegance. Written by a French fashion expert from another era, it fills Louise with hope that if she follows its advice on style, she, too, can be transformed into a graceful and poised grown-up woman. What makes this book such fun to read is not only Louise's contemporary quest for herself but also the timeless advice for budding Audrey Hepburns: 'It is the height of negligence to wear a white brassiere with a black girdle or the reverse.... If you are extremely show more refined and rich, your underclothes might match the colour of your outer ensemble.' There are similar gems throughout the book and they have the effect of lifting this tale of a young woman in search of true love to a new level. Tessaro's characterizations are well rounded and sympathetic enough to elevate them from the stereotypes (ex-model mother-in-law, gay man as best friend, dizzy workmates and so on) that can too often make up the casts of other, more frothy novels. A terrific read with a happy ending. show less

I found this account of a woman finding herself with the aid of a mid-twentieth century Parisian style guide to be warm, funny, and credible. That the heroine is also an expat American in London made me wonder which elements might be autobiographical but mostly I was sucked into the woman's journey out of a hopeless marriage.