Women's Fiction, African Americans - Fiction & Literature, Phases of Life - Fiction, Love & Relationships - Fiction

His Insignificant Other : A Novel

Name: His Insignificant Other : A Novel
Author: Karen V. Siplin
ISBN: 9780743222785

by Karen V. Siplin

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Overview

His Insignificant Other is one of the funniest and most endearing debut novels to hit the shelf since Bridget Jones's Diary. With a freshness and wit that is at times laugh-out-loud funny, at others heartbreaking, Karen V. Siplin brings to life a truly memorable character.

"They say there are few guarantees in life, but when you're a woman on the verge of turning thirty, there are several. Without fail, a gorgeous woman will always manage to introduce herself to your boyfriend at a party the very minute you stick a chicken wing in your mouth. The part of you that turned off the telephone ringer and lowered the volume on the answering machine just to have a couple of hours to yourself will disappear and you'll want to talk to the man in your life, whether he's special or not, every minute of the day. And the moment you and your boyfriend reach a significant milestone, like an anniversary, a woman from his past is sure to reappear."

These are the words of Casey Beck, a twenty-nine-year-old African-American college professor from New York City who is sick of her job, her friends, her boyfriend, even the margaritas at her favorite Southern-style bar. Staring at the road to thirty, Casey is hoping for a little love, a little sex and a little bit more out of her world. And then — boom. Her boyfriend's ex-girlfriend, whom she had hoped never to see again — the ex-girlfriend who had slept with her man only a few months before; the ex-girlfriend who always acted prettier, sexier, smarter, cooler than her — walks into her apartment one night and refuses to leave her life.

A hilarious, heartrending look at twenty-something living, His Insignificant Other is the story of a group of friends who are trying to decide whether it's time to settle down or move on. When Casey finds herself re-examining the contented couple life she thought she had created, she begins to realize that sometimes the pictures we paint for our own happiness are not always so accurate. Telling more than just the story of a bored professional searching for satisfaction, Karen V. Siplin brings to light the ennui that exists in all of our lives, both at the workplace and in the bedroom.

Whether laughing or crying at the wild, risky world of relationships, His Insignificant Other is a candid look at life and love on the verge of thirty.

Synopsis

Satisfied with her life as an adjunct film professor, African-American woman Casey Beck finds things unraveling in the discovery that her boyfriend, whom she had believed to be perfect, is having a relationship with his ex-girlfriend, a situation that prompts Casey to face her insecurity and possessiveness as well as her true feelings for her boyfriend. 30,000 first printing.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly

Billed as an African-American Bridget Jones's Diary, Siplin's debut explores the personal life of adjunct film professor Casey Beck, whose relationship with her boyfriend, John Paul, is threatened by the return of an ex-girlfriend, not to mention Casey's attraction to one of her students, a handsome firefighter named Josh. Mali, the ex, is alluring, manipulative and shameless; her reappearance provokes a crisis that brings to a head Casey's vague dissatisfaction with her life and career as she nears 30. She and her friends drift in and out of relationships and jobs, hovering listlessly between success and failure; the extent of their capacity for commitment seems to be a day at the laundromat. The aptly named Ariadne seems the closest to figuring out the tangled plots of the novel, or at the very least to escaping the labyrinth of hurt and revenge in which the rest of the cast is sadly stuck; she tries her hardest to hand Casey the thread, but to no avail. People seem to sleep with each other just because they can, a bit like eighth-graders competing for attention and making out behind the bleachers. Ethnicity never really enters into the story, except as a vague side note to the projected interracial romance between Casey and Josh, and when it comes down to it, none of the characters even the slinky, sneaky Mali herself hold much interest. They are uniformly self-absorbed and badly behaved, and the narrative lacks any of the self-conscious humor that might have saved it from itself. (June 11) Forecast: Though calling Casey a black Bridget may spark initial sales, the comparison isn't accurate. A good number of people may buy His Insignificant Other, but they probably won't pass it on. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Another debut novel for the long list of Bridget Jones's Diary wannabes, the heroine a 29-year-old African-American from Brooklyn. With a degree in film from Columbia, Casey lives in Brooklyn and has settled into teaching at an unnamed second-rate college. When she isn't working, she spends most of her time in various Manhattan bars and hangouts with her tight circle of friends, most of whom, the women particularly, she distrusts and dislikes-women here are so territorial and competitive that there's not much room for friendship. As things begin, John Paul has been Casey's boyfriend for exactly a year, even though for the last three months she has imposed celibacy, ever since he admitted to having slept with a former girlfriend in the earliest days of their relationship. For reasons never much gone into, he has gone along with the celibacy. Then, just when Casey is ready to drop her ban on sex, the old girlfriend, Mali, moves back to town and into their lives. Casey is immediately threatened, sure that Mali, conniving and unlikable in the extreme, is out to win John Paul back. Unfortunately, John Paul is so undeveloped as a character that it's hard to know what all the fuss between the two women is about. When he and Casey aren't arguing over Mali, their relationship consists of watching TV and falling asleep. And the fact that Casey's one real female confidante (conveniently gay so no competition) hates him is an early warning that John Paul isn't Mr. Right. Of course, an alternative arrives on the scene: a cute firefighter named Josh who lives near her in Brooklyn-important because everyone else, including John Paul, lives in Manhattan. Logistics play a big part in the plot. Harmlessescape-and, as the title says, insignificant.