Cause Celeb

Well, here we are - another Friday, another blog! (I realise that I could have written that sentence on any given Monday or Wednesday as well, but today happens to be Friday. So there). So, 'Cause Celeb' - for those of you who don't know, this is Helen Fielding's first novel and is really rather good! I'm often wary of the first novels written by authors I admire, as they're so often disappointing, but this one lived up to my opinion of her.

Admittedly, it didn't quite reach the heights of 'Bridget Jones', but that's a little like complaining that 'Emma' isn't as good as 'Pride and Prejudice' - it may be true, but both are so good, it's hardly relevant. 'Cause Celeb' is the story of Rosie Richardson, who heads off to be an aid worker in Africa, primarily to escape a broken heart.

While she is there, crisis hits and she has to re-involve herself in her old life to save the day! That sounds awful, but I promise it's not. Fielding is very amusing and as observant as usual, pinpointing the common motives behind 'altruism' slightly uncannily (don't believe me? What was the last altruistic thing you did? Why did you do it? Honestly? See?), without necessarily condemning the good resulting from such actions.

Rosie is charming and rings very true - she's the kind of girl you'd like to have a coffee with. She's fun, intelligent and interesting, but not so perfect as to be intimidating. Oliver, the breaker of Rosie's heart, is very well drawn - attractive enough for us to understand why Rosie dates him, but horrible enough to be convincingly destructive (emotionally speaking).

I really enjoyed reading this and it cemented my opinion of Helen Fielding as one of the best comedy writers of our time (if not one the best writers of our time). Absolutely worth a read.