A New York Times Bestseller “A powerful coming-of-age story that looks at ambition, friendship, identity, desire, and power from the much-needed female lens.” —Bustle “Ultra-readable.” —Vogue From the New York Times-bestselling author of The Interestings, comes an electric novel not just about who we want to be with, but who we want to be.To be admired by someone we admire—we all yearn for … to be with, but who we want to be.
To be admired by someone we admire—we all yearn for this: the private, electrifying pleasure of being singled out by someone of esteem. But sometimes it can also mean entry to a new kind of life, a bigger world.
Greer Kadetsky is a shy college freshman when she meets the woman she hopes will change her life. Faith Frank, dazzlingly persuasive and elegant at sixty-three, has been a central pillar of the women’s movement for decades, a figure who inspires others to influence the world. Upon hearing Faith speak for the first time, Greer—madly in love with her boyfriend, Cory, but still full of longing for an ambition that she can’t quite place—feels her inner world light up. And then, astonishingly, Faith invites Greer to make something out of that sense of purpose, leading Greer down the most exciting path of her life as it winds toward and away from her meant-to-be love story with Cory and the future she’d always imagined.
Charming and wise, knowing and witty, Meg Wolitzer delivers a novel about power and influence, ego and loyalty, womanhood and ambition. At its heart, The Female Persuasion is about the flame we all believe is flickering inside of us, waiting to be seen and fanned by the right person at the right time. It’s a story about the people who guide and the people who follow (and how those roles evolve over time), and the desire within all of us to be pulled into the light.
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I’ll read anything from Meg Wolitzer (The Interestings is one of my favorite books). The way she tracks a character’s development over decades is so realistic and gratifying. And in The Female Persuasion, Wolitzer tracks the development of various waves of feminism through the growth of each character. I was impressed with how she brought these huge hot-button issues to a human scale, and teased out multiple layers beyond just Faith & Greer’s relationship.
Though I sometimes felt a bit lost in the pacing of the book in the beginning, it really picks up steam when Greer starts working for Faith. By the end of the book, I found myself not wanting to say goodbye to the characters’ stories.
All in all, I’d recommend this book! Excited to watch the adaptation with Kidman.
As the daughter of a lesbian feminist, I was interested in this book’s history of the feminist movement and how it’s progressed or slipped backward over time. The first chapters served as a painful reminder of my own chaotic and exhilarating first year of university–some superb, witty writing here.
The story of Greer and her off-again on-again romance with Cory kept my attention–so much so that I woke up in the middle of the night to keep reading this book. I was particularly captivated by Cory–the young man who ends up caring for his despondent mother. As one character points out, perhaps he’s the most significant feminist in the entire book–simply by doing what needs to be done, and being of service where he’s most needed in the world.
This novel is perfect for anyone who craves submersion into a smart, thought-provoking story with well-drawn characters and commentary on both the #metoo movement and the current political administration.
All writing is political, but writing that’s only political is a failure of another kind. Wolitzer’s novel succeeds on every level by refusing the easy road for the complex one, giving us characters who clash, wound, disappoint, panic, recover, and thrive—life in all its messy modern glory. Full review at Chicago Review of Books.
Once I started reading The Female Persuasion I didn’t want to do anything else except keep reading it. Like all Meg Wolitzer novels, it is a delight to read, and yet also packed with ideas that had me wishing I had someone to talk them over with. (This novel is MADE for book clubs!) A college freshman, Greer Kadetsky, is talking to a boy at a frat party when he, without warning or permission, touches her breasts. She leaves without further incident, but the moment prompts her in part to seek advice and employment from a well-known feminist (a Gloria Steinem-like character), who runs a magazine and then later leads an organization that holds lectures and conferences around women’s issues.
The novel mainly follows Greer and her boyfriend Cory through their twenties, as each must deal with major issues both together and separately. Other characters also get some air time, all of them interesting, and all with a unique perspective on different aspects of current American culture. This novel deals with big topics in a unique, inviting way — warmly, with interest and honesty, and without flinching. I highly recommend it.
I love Meg’s characters and writing – and in this case, I also loved being inside the feminist activist world. Really a unique book, with so much to say, and yet so readable. The characters jump off the page and into your heart.
I cannot review as I read this too long ago. However, it did not leave a lasting impression!
Like many other readers of this tomb like book, I am ambivalent. I love the premise, the plot. I didn’t buy into all of the characters though. They were quite flat and not enough differences between them to set them apart and this is a problem when the author randomly switches POV. I easily lost track of who’s head I was in during long narratives.
Speaking of narratives. This book really did too much telling and not enough showing (one of the first rules we learn as writers is to show not tell). Furthermore, my next complaint is nit-picky but I really couldn’t wrap my head around the character’s names. ‘Greer’ is the MC and what actually is that name? I kept thinking it was a last name and it threw me each time I picked up the book to continue reading. Zee? Yuck. These names are just unappealing and do nothing for the characters. It’s my opinion that a character’s name should serve a use…reflect something about them, their background, their culture.
In spite of my complaints, there were a few parts of the book that really did shine. This passage for example: “She was like someone calling him from three backyards away. He felt suddenly nostalgic about his childhood, which lived like its own distant backyard deep inside him. But then he realized, as the therapist kept speaking to him, that what he missed wasn’t childhood, or being a child, but being close to a woman. that was what he no longer had.”
And: “He had lost Greer in a more ordinary way: a break up. People rarely spoke of a break up as tragic; instead breakups were part of life. But when you and the other person broke up, you could look for them everywhere, and maybe you would physically find them, but even if they were the same person they were not for you; they were not yours. The evaporation of love was like a kind of death.” p. 428 & 429
Both of these passages are about Cory, a secondary but still important character. In the end, I bought into him more than the MC. His story was real and turns out he was more feminist than some of the women in the story.
Overall, this novel was ambitious. Every single issue relevant to any type of feminist, was brought up. The problem was they were too numerous to really explore in any single character. That’s why 3 stars for this one.
But hey, Wolitzer rhymes with Pulitzer, so who knows? The author may be headed in that direction
Life is hard for and on these characters, and they are both appealing and frustrating, but the plot seems realistic and important.
Through realistically rendered characters, this book explores the challenges women face socially and professionally. Relatable, beautifully written, and really thought-provoking book.
Well written
What a great read. I identified with every character. It was an excellent representation on the struggles women have to trust and support each other. It was realistic in the generational differences of the women’s movement. True, sad, gripping and so moving. I loved this book.
Thought-provoking, insightful, clever, well-written, well worth reading.
This is one of those books I never wanted to end. It grabbed me from the outset, and kept drawing me back, even when I knew I should set it down and get back to work.
Awesome
I wanted to like this book, but just couldn’t.
Wolitzer is reliable and good.
I liked it, but but I didn’t at the same time. And I’m not sure how to explain it. The characters in the book were believable, but sometimes it seemed to drag on. Not sure I’d recommend this one. I know it got good reviews and I did finish it, but a book I could put down and let it set for a few days.
I loved the theme and the realistic characters. Very inspiring and relateable.
Meg Wolitzer’s take on the feminist movement is a fine journey, especially in view of the me-too movement. The characters are likable (I found myself comparing the Greer-Faith duo to ALL ABOUT EVE, but with a twist). The story takes a linear approach, weaving in and out of the climb these two women make–with a love interest or two along the way. It didn’t appeal to me that the love interests nearly dictate the paths the women take. The book is too long and could have been tightened up some. That said, I’ve read Wolitzer’s other books and her creativity and entertainment do not ever disappoint.
It was interesting, but not my favorite by a long shot.