The Interestings

A Novel

By: Meg Wolitzer

Narrated by: Jen Tullock

Length: 15 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

“Remarkable.... With this book [Wolitzer] has surpassed herself.” (The New York Times Book Review)

"A victory.... The Interestings secures Wolitzer's place among the best novelists of her generation.... She's every bit as literary as Franzen or Eugenides. But the very human moments in her work hit you harder than the big ideas. This isn't women's fiction. It's everyone's." (Entertainment Weekly)

A New York Times best-selling novel by Meg Wolitzer that has been called "genius" (Chicago Tribune), “wonderful” (Vanity Fair), "ambitious" (San Francisco Chronicle), and a “page-turner” (Cosmopolitan), which The New York Times Book Review says is "among the ranks of books like Jonathan Franzen’s Freedom and Jeffrey Eugenides' The Marriage Plot."

The summer that Nixon resigns, six teenagers at a summer camp for the arts become inseparable. Decades later the bond remains powerful, but so much else has changed. In The Interestings, Wolitzer follows these characters from the height of youth through middle age, as their talents, fortunes, and degrees of satisfaction diverge.

The kind of creativity that is rewarded at age 15 is not always enough to propel someone through life at age 30; not everyone can sustain, in adulthood, what seemed so special in adolescence. Jules Jacobson, an aspiring comic actress, eventually resigns herself to a more practical occupation and lifestyle. Her friend Jonah, a gifted musician, stops playing the guitar and becomes an engineer. But Ethan and Ash, Jules’s now-married best friends, become shockingly successful - true to their initial artistic dreams, with the wealth and access that allow those dreams to keep expanding. The friendships endure and even prosper, but also underscore the differences in their fates, in what their talents have become and the shapes their lives have taken.

Wide in scope, ambitious, and populated by complex characters who come together and apart in a changing New York City, The Interestings explores the meaning of talent; the nature of envy; the roles of class, art, money, and power; and how all of it can shift and tilt precipitously over the course of a friendship and a life.

©2013 Megan Wolitzer (P)2013 Penguin Audio

"Interesting" enough but nothing special

I found this appealing but I'm sure many listeners will be annoyed by the mostly well-off East Coast young people whining about what they don't have or can't do. It could have been shorter. Also it's mostly in chronological order but then items will be thrown in out of order for no particular reason.

The characters' happiest times are in high school at their arts camp. For many of us, being an adult is way better than adolescence but those people keep trying to return to their youth, which of course never works.

The narration is very good and it kept my attention. It's an interesting contrast with Shotgun Lovesongs, which is also about a group of friends in middle age regretting their lost youth. I think that one was deeper than this book.

Such a deep dive into the characters

The narration was excellent, perfect cadence, delightful. I listed at 1.2x speed wherein i usually listen to books at 1.5x. The characters’ stories were complex and interwoven throughout time. It was written in a way that made you care about them. It reminded me of both “The Gold Finch” by Donna Tartt and “A little life” by Hanya Yanagihara, yet not as sad.

I will be looking for more books by this author.

She just couldn't leave Summer Camp

At first I was worried that I was reading a book for highschoolers, then things started to happen and the plot and characters matured. This book is about the geek kid, the unpopular one. Then she grows up and life happens. We are all lured by our past at one time or another and these characters interact in interesting ways. I liked this book a lot and found it interesting.

Audible Redemption!

What did you love best about The Interestings?

First, let me say that I was so hesitant to "read" another audiobook after listening to a narration of "Wool" by Hugh Howey that was so painful, I had to finish the book in text.

I am SO HAPPY with Jen Tullock's narration of "The Interestings" that, frankly, it could have been a much lesser novel and I would have torn through it just as quickly.

I am a native Manhattanite, temporary Southerner, and, honestly, I seek out epic novels that have New York City as their backdrop. This novel positively SLAYED me. The monotony, mundanity, anonymity, of our lives and the steps we take to give these lives meaning - THAT is what this book is about.

Did you love St. Elmo's Fire? If so, you will love this book.

What other book might you compare The Interestings to and why?

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenedies; Beloved by Zadie Smith; Let the Great World Spin by ColomnMcCann.

Which scene was your favorite?

Oh there were SO MANY. Jonah. Moonies. "Ethan; you LOVE her..."

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

I would LOVE to see this novel as a film. And I hate novels as films. What would the tag line be...?

"Boy wanders; girl waits"?

"Makeouts, Moonies, Money and More!"

No.

I was excited to answer this question but I just can't reduce this novel to a tag line!

Any additional comments?

Narration was STELLAR. Tullock, through infliction and pitch, is masterful with her characters. You come to know EXACTLY who she is voicing without any cues, simply by ear. She doesn't explicitly change her tone ro pitch, but a slight graveling lets you know that Ethan is "speaking" well before Ethan is credited with the speech.

This book was amazing. I'm looking forward to more from Jen Tullock AND Meg Wolitzer.

Could use some editing

I enjoy Meg Wolitzer’s books. This one dragged on a bit. Over all a good listen.

Great listen. Outstanding narration.

Love this story. And the narration is amazing. Compelling from start to finish. Thoughtful and funny. Very engaging!

was so looking forward to this story

Story was Ok, Narration was pretty bad, she spoke so fast I actually thought I had hit the speed control in error. I almost returned it without listening but because the chacters were exactly my age I plowed on and you do get used to the speed reading after awhile. These people weren't anything like the folks I grew up with, while I loved reliving, Nixon, Watergate, Munich, and the Berlin wall, that was all I had in common with these people. I just couldn't bring myself to care about any of them.

Fantastic book, absolutely amazing performance

Any additional comments?

Jen Tullock brings the book alive, giving each character a unique, real voice.

The story is enthralling, moving you through the lives of several people over many decades, some deeply, some only fleetingly. The chapters are not chronological, but that's not a hindrance.

Great book.

Tedious with Some Good Moments

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No. It's a big of a slog getting through this very long book. Meg Wolitzer is a good writer and some of her scenes with virtually just dialogue are quite good. I didn't think the plot was enough to sustain the length of the story, however.

What do you think your next listen will be?

I don't know!

Was The Interestings worth the listening time?

No, not really. But the reader was very good and I really enjoyed her different intonations and accents.

Any additional comments?

When this book starts, my first inclination was to say "Whoa!" to the reader because she starts out so very fast. But gradually I came to think that the reader was the best thing about the audio book and I kept listening because I enjoyed her more than the story itself.

All that work for THAT ending?

What did you love best about The Interestings?

I did like this book. I enjoyed the development of relationships over time and the realization that adolescence, can't last forever. I enjoyed each character and felt they were fully developed.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Interestings?

Ethan and Jules' kiss on the couch in the loft. Jules discovering Goodman.

Have you listened to any of Jen Tullock’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

She did an excellent job with all the different voices and I felt each was distinct.

If you could take any character from The Interestings out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Dennis....he was the most real and relateable character.

Any additional comments?

Although I enjoyed this book, I was completely disappointed with the end. I felt there was unfinished business and I didn't feel closure with all the characters. Maybe the author is leaving this ending so drifting because she setting herself up for a second book? I don't know, but I felt I did way to much reading and listening for a bad ending.