Vain book review
Plot, it seems, has an almost supernatural ability to overshadow the flaws of any novel. There may be blatant grammatical errors, the dialogue’s cliché-level may be analogous to vampire books written after the Twilight Series, the vocabulary may be that of a sixth grader, but for some reason you cannot put the book down. Vain, by Fisher Amelie, is the epitome of a bad book rescued by a superlative use of signposts such as Words of the Wiser and Aha Moment, which in consequence, develops the plot. The cause of cliché dialogue in Vain was due to Amelie's misuse of the Again and Again signpost. While this signpost is meant to make the reader notice the repeated word, phrase or situation, it leaves the reader thinking the familiar dictum “been there done that”. For example, she blatantly overused the word “astronomically”, and also diverted every few pages to describe in depth the main character’s infatuation with her coworker. It was poor use of Again and Again that left this sentence feeling cheesy and overdone, “The truth is, I'm so deep in love with you, I can't see straight. The truth is, I've been afraid to admit it to myself, let alone you. The truth is, I'm terrified.”
Although it is incredible that such cliché overuse of Again and Again signpost could create an original and entertaining plot, Amelie pulls it off. This is achieved by Amelie’s excellent incorporation of Aha Moment and Words of the Wiser. Through Words of the Wiser, Amelie discusses subjects such as vanity, privilege and redemption honestly, which is so rare in the chick-lit genre. For example, Amelie eloquently discussed vanity through the dialogue of the main character’s wiser coworker, “Vanity's a debilitating affliction. You’re so absorbed in yourself it’s impossible to love anyone other than oneself, leaving you weak without realization of it.” To continue, the main character’s transformation from impertinent socialite to pertinacious humanitarian was a major highlight of Vain. Amelie utilizes Aha moment when the main character realizes how fortunate she truly is, “Their innocence is addicting, their hope is catching and I'm happy to be surrounded by them.” This sudden change of heart had the readers cheering for the main character and feeling like a changer person themselves.
Plot, it seems, has an almost supernatural ability to overshadow the flaws of any novel. There may be blatant grammatical errors, the dialogue’s cliché-level may be analogous to vampire books written after the Twilight Series, the vocabulary may be that of a sixth grader, but for some reason you cannot put the book down. Vain, by Fisher Amelie, is the epitome of a bad book rescued by a superlative use of signposts such as Words of the Wiser and Aha Moment, which in consequence, develops the plot. The cause of cliché dialogue in Vain was due to Amelie's misuse of the Again and Again signpost. While this signpost is meant to make the reader notice the repeated word, phrase or situation, it leaves the reader thinking the familiar dictum “been there done that”. For example, she blatantly overused the word “astronomically”, and also diverted every few pages to describe in depth the main character’s infatuation with her coworker. It was poor use of Again and Again that left this sentence feeling cheesy and overdone, “The truth is, I'm so deep in love with you, I can't see straight. The truth is, I've been afraid to admit it to myself, let alone you. The truth is, I'm terrified.”
Although it is incredible that such cliché overuse of Again and Again signpost could create an original and entertaining plot, Amelie pulls it off. This is achieved by Amelie’s excellent incorporation of Aha Moment and Words of the Wiser. Through Words of the Wiser, Amelie discusses subjects such as vanity, privilege and redemption honestly, which is so rare in the chick-lit genre. For example, Amelie eloquently discussed vanity through the dialogue of the main character’s wiser coworker, “Vanity's a debilitating affliction. You’re so absorbed in yourself it’s impossible to love anyone other than oneself, leaving you weak without realization of it.” To continue, the main character’s transformation from impertinent socialite to pertinacious humanitarian was a major highlight of Vain. Amelie utilizes Aha moment when the main character realizes how fortunate she truly is, “Their innocence is addicting, their hope is catching and I'm happy to be surrounded by them.” This sudden change of heart had the readers cheering for the main character and feeling like a changer person themselves.