Welcome to the very first ABM Book Club discussion. We’re making history today guys! First off I wanted to say THANK YOU to everyone who has already left comments, emailed or shown their support on IG. I was actually pretty nervous that no one would join in and I’d look like that dorky lonely girl clutching her book during lunch at school. You know what I mean? Anyway, thanks for joining and agreeing that yes, indeed, reading is way cool.
So, The Interestings was pretty awesome, right?! I’m going to throw out a few topics for discussion. I may (or may not) add my two cents to each, but I’d love to hear what you thought. Please chime in and if you’d like to reference the discussion point by number feel free. If there’s something you wanted to discuss that’s not listed you’re welcome to start a new point of discussion as well. If you want to respond to something another commenter said just hit “reply.”
(Also, yes, this has spoilers! So, if you’re not done reading yet you might hold off on reading the discussion points below.)
1.) Jules’ (aka Julie’s) name changed once she attended her first summer at Spirit in the Woods. Do you think she changed too? If so, in what way(s)?
2.) One big theme from the book is the idea of classism, or at least feeling like you identify with one class in society and not others. What are your thoughts on this?
-Jules feels out of place and lucky to be invited into the Wolf family partly because they are in a higher (and therefore, to her) better class than her. I really liked the scene where Jules is talking to her sister at the end of the book and asks if her sister was ever jealous of her. Jules assumes her sister was jealous, since she obviously had a more interesting life with higher class friends. While her sister is surprised she ever thought that, because she was never jealous. Maybe classes only exist to those who care?
-I really like how the book explores the friendship between a lower income family (Jules and Dennis) and an extremely wealthy family (Ash and Ethan). They have awkward moments, for sure, but I like that none of them (aside from sometimes Jules, more on that in the next point) really seem to care.
Ash and Ethan embody the two extremes from the upper class: old money and new money. I think it’s interesting that Ash seems to be more inherently entitled and blind to her and her families wrongs, while Ethan is described as the morally fair and upright character in the book.
3.) Jules’ jealousy.
I really loved and sometimes identified with this character. I also feel like what I learned from her most was a life lived jealously is such a waste of time. She makes herself (and her husband) so unhappy with her jealousy of Ash and Ethan’s life, even though she obviously loves them both a great deal. I also think it’s interesting that Jules is the only one feeling disappointed by her life, while Dennis and Rory seem perfectly happy with their home, how much money their household has, etc. It seems that jealousy makes you discontent when you really don’t need to be.
4.) Art. Most of the main characters in this book consider themselves creative and most of them pursue artistic careers. What do you think about that?
I loved watching Ethan’s success. You meet his character as a boy who is just filling up notebook after notebook with doodles, dreaming of being an illustrator in some capacity. He also created Figland originally as a way for his teenage self to deal with his parents divorce. I love that he used art as an escape and a outlet for the difficult and complicated things he encountered in life. He found a productive and positive way to deal with his hardships. I love that.
Jules discovers this world of creative kids when she first attends Spirit in the Woods after her father as passed away when she’s a teenager. She falls in love with this world and wants to be a part of it. She tries to have a career in comedic acting but it doesn’t ultimately work out. She becomes a social worker and seems to be pretty good at it. Later in life she has the opportunity to return to the world of Spirit in the Woods to run the camp with her husband. They quit their jobs, leave the city and give it a shot. She ends up feeling disappointed about the experience and not renewing their post after the first summer. The whole scene where Dennis spells out why he thinks she is disappointed by the experience I think is just so good.
Jonah I think is the most tragic character with regard to “art.” He feels his art was stolen from him as a child because of the whole Barry Grimes thing. And I agree, he was stolen from and just, frankly, abused through that relationship. I think Barry deserved a lot of jail time for his actions rather than the mediocre career he gets out of it. But anyway, because of this Jonah gives up on music and goes into robotics. By the time he’s in his 40s he realizes he has really missed music all his life. Ethan encourages him to just do it for fun, just play music with anyone/for anyone. Jonah does, and he seems much happier for it. I love that even though maybe Jonah could have had a successful career in music by the time he realizes (or maybe admits) that he even wants that he is well into another career and he feels perhaps the time to pursue that has already passed. So he does it for fun-and he’s content with that. I love it. Art doesn’t have to be your career for it to be a meaningful and awesome part of your life. Just do it. Like Jonah.
5.) Goodman Wolf.
First, what a cool name that is wasted on such a bad character. Here’s an example of a rich kid getting away with a crime if there ever was one. Based on what Cathy told Jules, and the fact that Goodman did flee, I think it’s pretty safe to say that he did rape Cathy. But instead of jail time he instead receives a life abroad supported by his parents and then his sister Ash with her husband’s money.
Although it’s perhaps a cliche, I really like that the book has Goodman starting out this absolutely beautiful and much loved/admired character and then by the end of the book he is this old, ugly, has nothing without the charity of his family, wreaked human being. It’s fitting, I guess poetic justice? Is that what that saying means?
It’s so sad/disgusting that he not only wreaked Cathy’s adolescence, but he also very nearly ends Ash and Ethan’s marriage by his life and willingness to accept his families support over the years. I think Ethan was right, Ash did choose her family over him by keeping the secret all those years. But I don’t think that makes their marriage unrepairable. And in the end, they did reconcile.
6.) Did you cry a little when Ethan died? I did.
Ok, I’ll stop rambling for now (I’ll probably continue in the comments). What did you all think of the book? xo. Emma
Dennis was the only character I liked. I was put off with the author’s slamming of Ronald Reagan and pushing her liberal political views on the reader who generally picks up a novel to be entertained, to escape the nastiness of politics. I’ll not read another by this author.
Thank you so much for starting this book club! I am an avid reader of novels and have been delighted with your selections! So much so, that I have gifted my mother-in-law (a high school literature teacher) every book after reading! And for the record, she has thoroughly enjoyed every one!
On a more personal note, I work as a trauma therapist in a pediatric ET, within a large U.S. city. As a result, I work odd hours and often have days off in the middle of the week that are not congruent with those of my fiends and family. Reading novels is a wonderful form of self-care for me and your book club has added a nice feeling of community for me while partaking in such great reads!
Thank you for the beauty you all bring to the world! Sorry this isn’t directly about the book 😉
Love this idea!!! Would you mind emailing me details on how to join?
I really wanted to like this but I just didn’t. It had a few cool moments but overall I thought it was boring. Sorry!
I AM SO LATE TO THIS, OH MY GOSH!
I just finished the book today and my oh my..it took me forever to get through that. On a scale of 1-5..five being the best book ever and 1 being the absolute worst..i’m going to say it’s a three. There were interesting parts here and there but I feel Wolitzer failed to fully develop a story. I wish she would focus on a centralized plot versus briefly touching different points here and there. Jules, to me, seemed to be a very annoying, jealous person who had such low selfesteem but at the same time held herself above her family and husband.
I didn’t cry when Ethan died from cancer because her words didn’t captivate a feeling for me but i can sense sadness from it..i just didn’t cry. Overall, it was an okay book but unlike a few others that I’ve read..this failed to keep me glued.
Christina
promisesofcoffee.com
I am just now joining in the discussion because I just now finished the book and didn’t want to see any spoilers! I am so glad I joined in on the book club, because I don’t know I would have ever read this book. I finished the book feeling a little depressed but also inspired in a way. Wolitzer really captures real people, with all their faults, and I guess that was what was depressing to me. Jonah and Dennis were the most likable characters to me, because they really seemed to have the best and purest intentions, but they were also tragic. Jules’ envy was hard to read about at times, but the book made it so clear how completely fruitless and toxic jealousy is. What I got out of it most was that it’s most important to do things that make you happy and enjoy your life in whatever form it may be, because envying won’t make you rich, and money won’t save you from death. All in all this was a fascinating read and study of human behavior and character!
Jules definitely re-invented herself after she changed her name and it was quite sad that she was so determined to detach herself from her family. The very few interactions she had with her mum and her sister in her adult life were very cold and distant; it showed a lot of pent up resentment that her own family couldn’t give her what the Wolfs did.
I also found Jules hard to like because her jealousy made her a bitter person. The times that she stepped up through Dennis’s depression was a credit to her but had she not caved in and accepted Ethan’s money to get them a new house I wonder how much longer she would’ve supported the family.
I really liked Dennis and Rory’s relationship; they made the best of what they had and were happy to live their lives being themselves, unlike Jules who was always comparing herself to others.
As for Ethan, I think his character is admirable except for how he struggled to love Mo. That made me very uneasy about him. His generosity and the fact that money didn’t really change his fundamental values was great to see. I definitely didn’t predict that he would die at the end. Very sad.
As for Goodman and Ash; I think Ash was blinded by her parents influence to keep covering for Goodman. She was only a teenager when this big family scandal happened and she had no choice but to go along with what her parents started. It doesn’t make it right though.
I enjoyed the book. I liked the slow pace of it because it gives you a chance to really connect with the characters.
Can’t wait to start on the next book! 🙂
1.)Jules’ (aka Julie’s) name changed once she attended her first summer at Spirit in the Woods. Do you think she changed too? If so, in what way(s)?
When Jules’ name changed at Spirit in the Woods, I think she started to believe that she had changed in a way and made the nickname more into a persona as such. It’s as if being nicknamed Jules’ gave her a huge bout of confidence and the little lift that I think Jules needed to get her out of her shell after her father’s passing.
2.)One big theme from the book is the idea of classism, or at least feeling like you identify with one class in society and not others. What are your thoughts on this?
Class in this book seemed to be involved a lot with the storyline. You were always reminded on how “poor” Jules felt and how other characters did not seem phased by money at all. Like for example further on in the book when Ethan excels in his career with Figland and earns a lot of money, it’s as if he tries to hide the fact that he is so well off. Jules is the only character that appears to be so focused on money, which is why I think Ash tries to help out Jules and Dennis moneywise quite a lot to try and help Jules not to worry and concentrate on it so much.
3.)Art. Most of the main characters in this book consider themselves creative and most of them pursue artistic careers. What do you think about that?
Art did seem to be quite a theme throughout the book as well. The book starts off with all of these characters all in their teenage years spending a considerable time together in the camp. Spirit in the woods as the founders seem to put it across as the home for arty individuals, whether it be dancing, art, singing or music to name a few. I’m not sure if it marketed that way to keep artistic qualities in people in the new modern age, instead of them sitting in front of a computer playing games all day.
The book contains the happy side of people carrying out hobbies that they love and enjoy and turn into a very successful career (Ethan). It also has the very sad side about what happened to Johan and how music was ruined for him by Barry Grimes.
What happened with Johan is very sad and I feel very sorry for his character that he feels he needs to avoid music entirely and not even use it as a hobby until he is well into his 40s. I think that is due to the fact that Johan doesn’t want the association with music and the abuse that he received when he was younger. What pains me the most about this character is the fact that the abuse affects him for the rest of his life including his relationships, it’s as if he is always living in fear and the drugs are always not far away from his experiences, which they are far away but for him they aren’t.
4.)Goodman Wolf.
All the way up until near the end of the book I was sort of in the frame of mind that Goodman could quite possibly be innocent and Cathy had possibly made it all up. But, when near the end of the book that Jules found Goodman on the parameters of the Spirit at the Woods camp and the way he was and the way he acted, all I could think about was how much of a sleaze he was! I was very disappointed in myself to believe for a split second that he could very well have been innocent, to be honest he could have been innocent (only the author would know) but in my opinion I believe he was not.
5.)Did you cry a little when Ethan died?
I didn’t cry, but I was definitely feeling a lot of emotion as Ethan is someone I would have related to the most as I was reading it, more so in his younger years than his adulthood.
I final finished…over the past few days I could not put it down. could not wait to get home from work to read it. I really could relate to Jules…A lot of her feelings and differences with her friends I could related to having those same feelings through my life of 50 years. It left me taking a look at my friendships through the years…from the close friends I have had and still have, to the jealousy one some times feels of those more fortunate friends and being thankful for the good friends I do have. I am about the same age as the characters in this book so the time period of this really hit home for me through each decade. I really admired the relationship with Jules and Ethan…it was a special friendship that everyone should have in their life. Thanks for a great selection and very excited to start the next book.
kim
I liked the book. It also took me a while to get into. I just finished, which is good that you are reading The fault in our Stars this month because I’ve already read that one. Really. Excited to see what the March book is. Dorothy
Gina, I have to agree with you on being upset at Jules convincing her husband of the joys of camp and then being mad at him when he took to the position. Ethan was always encouraging and challenged his friends to think which I admired. However, his love for Jules became convoluted when I imagined Ash at his side. Dennis seemed to encourage their relationship sans jealousy. His depression was so vividly described. I was cheering when they found a remedy. It was interesting to me how Jonah’s mother re-discovered her calling with the worshippers after trying to rescue her own son from hiding away with them. Two things frustrated me to no end: the Wolf family enabling Goodman and Jonah not telling his mother about Barry. I really wanted Jonah to be content. Maybe he finally was when he picked up his guitar again.
i can’t speak for the person who made the comment but i would imagine they are referring to the show “girls” on hbo with lena dunham? maybe?
Better late than never (I just finished the book yesterday)…
1.) I think Jules changed a lot since the first time she went to camp. I think the fact of being accepted by the cool kids made her become obsessed with them. She wanted to be like Ash and be liked by Goodman, and that’s also where she started to become unsatisfied with her poor, not-pretty-and-talented-enough self and started feeling a never ending jealousy.
2.) One big theme from the book is the idea of classism, or at least feeling like you identify with one class in society and not others. What are your thoughts on this?
I think the way Meg Wolitzer explores relationships between classes and the jealousy toward the higher class is amazing. I’m not very rich but I went to private schools and university with the wealthiest kids in my country, so I really could see myself in Jules, envying other people’s lives.
3.) Jules’ jealousy.
Although that jealousy made me think she was pathetic –her life revolving around Ethan an Ash as opposed to herself– , but at the same time I think it’s absolutely normal. I mean, who wouldn’t want to be talented, beautiful, lucky, and rich?
4.) Art. Most of the main characters in this book consider themselves creative and most of them pursue artistic careers. What do you think about that?
I like the realistic outlook on art: no matter how passionate you are about it, sometimes you just don’t have what it takes, like Jules. Or perhaps you make it, but not because of your true talent, but for the people you are associated with, like Ash, who was more talented that Jules but not as much as Ethan. I feel bad for Jules, though… it would have been nice to see her succeed artistically… especially because she never seemed to get what she wanted in any aspect of her life.
5.) Goodman Wolf.
He’s a jerk and I kind of find him interesting because of that. He’s rude and cynical, which makes him stand out from the rest of the characters. It made me sad to see how stupid he was, though. With his parents’ support he could have gotten his act straight and make things work for himself. Instead, he just used his money to drink and do drugs, and end up being a pathetic old man with a golden tooth. So sad.
What I found really interesting was how the story developed in a long period of time. It makes you think about how people change through adulthood. How you can start with nothing and end up being a legend of your generation, like Ethan, or just keep waiting for better times that never seem to come, like Jules, who didn’t achieve any of her dreams. She just survived. It was harsh but comforting at the same time, you know? Realizing that if you don’t live the dream you’re most probably not the only one. Or that, one day, no matter how unlikely you might think it is, you can achieve your biggest dreams.
I LOVED The Interestings too! I especially loved Ethan. His scenes with Jules just broke my heart. And i loved Jules. All the characters were so flawed and so human. The whole story was very bittersweet. I can’t remember the last time I cried after finihsing a book. I reviewed it here: http://margotmcgovern.wordpress.com/2014/02/01/the-interestings-meg-wolitzer/ Have you read any of Wolitzer’s other books? I haven’t, but very keen too. Looking for an idea of where to start.
While I loved this book, I thought it was fascinating that with the exception of Ethan, Jonah, and Dennis, most of the characters populating this book were unlikable yet fascinating anyway. It was nerve-wracking in a good way to see parts of myself and people I know in these characters. This book is a beautiful portrayal of the imperfections of human relationships and yet how worthwhile and amazing they are anyway. Except Goodman – nothing good really going on there, except he was an excellent example of how wealth and a life without consequence can ruin a person.
I absolutely loved this book. I was initially drawn to it because I’ve spent several years working in camping and can vouch for the fact that the friends people make at camp are truly the best friends a person can have.
I loved being able to see what this connection brought over the course of several years. There were times, I’m not going to lie, that the book frustrated me. I often wanted to yell at Jules and couldn’t always tell if she was on good terms with Ash and Ethan. But overall, I think this was a great book and spoke wonderfully to the connections that people can and do make every summer at camp.
I found this one tough to finish and am still going.
As others have mentioned, some of the characters have captivated me, but at times I became disheartened with Jules’ constant dissatisfaction with her life.
It is, however a good eye opener into how easily time can be wasted worrying about what you do not have.
Jules definitely re-invented herself after she changed her name and it was quite sad that she was so determined to detach herself from her family. The very few interactions she had with her mum and her sister in her adult life were very cold and distant; it showed a lot of pent up resentment that her own family couldn’t give her what the Wolfs did.
I also found Jules hard to like because her jealousy made her a bitter person. The times that she stepped up through Dennis’s depression was a credit to her but had she not caved in and accepted Ethan’s money to get them a new house I wonder how much longer she would’ve supported the family.
I really liked Dennis and Rory’s relationship; they made the best of what they had and were happy to live their lives being themselves, unlike Jules who was always comparing herself to others.
As for Ethan, I think his character is admirable except for how he struggled to love Mo. That made me very uneasy about him. His generosity and the fact that money didn’t really change his fundamental values was great to see. I definitely didn’t predict that he would die at the end. Very sad.
As for Goodman and Ash; I think Ash was blinded by her parents influence to keep covering for Goodman. She was only a teenager when this big family scandal happened and she had no choice but to go along with what her parents started. It doesn’t make it right though.
I enjoyed the book. I liked the slow pace of it because it gives you a chance to really connect with the characters.
Can’t wait to start on the next book! 🙂
Jules definitely re-invented herself after she changed her name and it was quite sad that she was so determined to detach herself from her family. The very few interactions she had with her mum and her sister in her adult life were very cold and distant; it showed a lot of pent up resentment that her own family couldn’t give her what the Wolfs did.
I also found Jules hard to like because her jealousy made her a bitter person. The times that she stepped up through Dennis’s depression was a credit to her but had she not caved in and accepted Ethan’s money to get them a new house I wonder how much longer she would’ve supported the family.
I really liked Dennis and Rory’s relationship; they made the best of what they had and were happy to live their lives being themselves, unlike Jules who was always comparing herself to others.
As for Ethan, I think his character is admirable except for how he struggled to love Mo. That made me very uneasy about him. His generosity and the fact that money didn’t really change his fundamental values was great to see. I definitely didn’t predict that he would die at the end. Very sad.
As for Goodman and Ash; I think Ash was blinded by her parents influence to keep covering for Goodman. She was only a teenager when this big family scandal happened and she had no choice but to go along with what her parents started. It doesn’t make it right though.
I enjoyed the book. I liked the slow pace of it because it gives you a chance to really connect with the characters.
Can’t wait to start on the next book! 🙂
Once Julie became Jules, I think that she changed as a person. She was opened up to this new world of creativity and excitement, something she never had before. She became Ash and Ethan and Goodman and Jonah. She became artsy and interested in more than she currently had.
To me, Jules really exemplifies this idea. Throughout her life, especially during adulthood, Jules felt as if she and Dennis were in a completely different realm than Ash and Ethan. Wolitzer shows Jules’s increasing jealousy, which eventually levels out but never fully disappears. Jules and Dennis both grew up modestly, and stayed this way. Ethan, however, grew up modestly as well, but became transformed through his talent and connection with Ash. I think that people can identify with one class in society and not others, but they aren’t limited by this. You can always change yourself and your circumstances and become someone different, much like Ethan did. Ethan also shows how one can change and step into another class, but can still be moral and connect with those from a lower class in society.
Like I mentioned briefly above, Jules had an intense jealousy for Ash and Ethan. I feel like everyone experiences some form of this in life: feeling jealous of those close to you for what they have and experience and what you don’t. Her feelings were natural, albeit obsessive, and she just never felt like she truly connected with her old friends once they all became the current versions of themselves in adulthood.
I love how this book focuses on a group of friends coming together because of art. Art is such a powerful thing and has so much potential to bind people together, even those who would otherwise have nothing in common with each other. While Ash and Ethan chose to pursue artistic careers, which worked out for them and they were happy with, Jules and Jonah chose not to. It was more of that Jules wasn’t fit for the creative career she thought she was, while Jonah didn’t want to pursue music because of his past. Jonah experienced a pretty harsh trauma of being drugged as a child, which drove away all creative interests of his concerning music until later on it life. But he found another creative outlet, mechanical engineering, which shows that everyone has art in them; whether or not it’s traditional and obvious or different and new.
Goodman is such a lovable character, yet one who drives you crazy. I feel like this is how Jules and Ash and the other characters in the book felt as well. Goodman holds some sort of power over everyone else during their childhood days spent at Spirit in the Woods. But his father’s expectations and the constant comparison to Ash really get to Goodman. Whether or not he actually did rape Cathy I’m not too sure. I feel sort of like Jules regarding this topic. He could have done it, but at the same time I don’t want to believe that he did it. He just snapped and needed to be somewhere else, away from everything familiar to him. But his life never really got better and he ended up wrecking other people’s lives and placing stress on those who had to keep the secret that he still existed and was okay.