In her acclaimed debut novel, Prep, Curtis Sittenfeld created a touchstone with her pitch-perfect portrayal of adolescence. Her prose is as intensely realistic and compelling as ever in The Man of My Dreams, a disarmingly candid and sympathetic novel about the collision of a young woman’s fantasies of family and love with the challenges and realities of adult life. Hannah Gavener is fourteen in the summer of 1991. In the magazines she reads, celebrities plan elaborate weddings; in Hannah’s own life, her parents’ marriage is crumbling. And somewhere in between these two extremes—just maybe—lie the answers to love’s most bewildering questions. But over the next decade and a half, as she moves from Philadelphia to Boston to Albuquerque, Hannah finds that the questions become more rather than less complicated: At what point can you no longer blame your adult failures on your messed-up childhood? Is settling for someone who’s not your soul mate an act of maturity or an admission of defeat? And if you move to another state for a guy who might not love you back, are you being plucky—or just pathetic? None of the relationships in Hannah’s life are without complications. There’s her father, whose stubbornness Hannah realizes she’s unfortunately inherited; her gorgeous cousin, Fig, whose misbehavior alternately intrigues and irritates Hannah; Henry, whom Hannah first falls for in college, while he’s dating Fig; and the boyfriends who love her more or less than she deserves, who adore her or break her heart. By the time she’s in her late twenties, Hannah has finally figured out what she wants most—but she doesn’t yet know whether she’ll find the courage to go after it. Full of honesty and humor, The Man of My Dreams is an unnervingly insightful and beautifully written examination of the outside forces and personal choices that make us who we are.
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"I love Curtis Sittenfeld - her style of writing takes you right into the character's mind. The main character is socially inept and overthinks everything, which causes her to make some very bad decisions about relationships. Although she annoyed me at times, I still really enjoyed the book. "
— Teena (4 out of 5 stars)
" Ugh. I wish I could give this 2.5 stars, since the writing was better than decent. But the people were so unlikeable. "
— Carolyn, 2/12/2014" I read this book under protest, because I hated "Prep" (what a letdown after all the hype, especially since I've been obsessed with boarding school since reading "A Little Princess" at age six. Plus, I secretly resent people who are not much older than I am, yet manage to write bestsellers.) However, I can't get a library card until I can prove that I live in this godforsaken state, so I bought it for three bucks. Anyway, I thought it was lightyears better than "Prep," which sold way more copies and got much more attention. The NYT described the main character as a "female Charlie Brown," which is pretty accurate in that she's a wallflower who hates herself without being at all whiny about it. I don't know, I just LIKE that in a girl! Okay, so the book was too long and the middle section dragged a lot, plus Sittenfeld bends over backwards pinning the narrator's entire personality on a crappy dad. But I thought she did a wonderful job portraying the main character's depression, anxieties, and feelings of exclusion--not particularly entertaining things to read about--and resisted the urge to chick-lit-ize the ending. "
— Geraldine, 2/10/2014" Sittenfeld has a great way of making her characters come to life, but I have found with every book that I have read by her that I really just want the women to stand up for themselves and quit being doormats! "
— Christy, 1/31/2014" The Man of My Dreams was definitely not my favorite book I have read, even though I did not finish it. I decided to abandon it because it seemed very boring to me. It was repetitive and I did not enjoy the plot of the book. Maybe if I continue reading it later on, it will get better and I will like it, but as for now, I am going to pursue a different book and stop reading this one. "
— Anya, 1/30/2014" Loved the honesty, but often wanted to throttle the main character "
— Nicole, 1/30/2014" I'm not saying this is the best book I've ever read, but it definitely made me think. And it definitely didn't fall into the category of normal chick lit (all about shopping, men, and martinis, etc) - in my opinion it was far from it. I enjoyed Sittenfeld's writing style and the fact that she assumed the reader would be intelligent, therefore not overwriting with mundane facts or too much explanation. I think the end could have been fleshed out into a couple more chapters but I'm not sure it would have added anything but volume and more for me to read. I also enjoyed seeing some parallels between my own relationship experiences with that of the characters. Overall, I really enjoyed it. "
— Mandy, 1/23/2014" I have to say this was a quick fun read. I loved all the twists and turns of her life, and the finding of true love. A sweet book that is not only fun but heartwarming too. "
— Joni, 1/19/2014" Wow, this was pretty bad. It kind of wandered all over without much point, and then there was a last chapter where the character emails the ending of the story to her psychiatrist... as if maybe Sittenfeld got tired of writing the book and wanted to just wrap it up. "
— Mandy, 1/19/2014" Hannah Gavener's father is emotionally abusive and her parents divorce when she is a child. This novel traces Hannah's search for "The Man of Her Dreams," providing details of her life and her 3 major relationships. "
— Val, 1/13/2014" Not as good as 'Prep' but still a decent read. She uses many themes common in chick lit but manages an interesting story. Her heroines often have unpleasant flaws but she writes so that you become interested in their struggles anyway. "
— jen8998, 1/2/2014" A really quick book to read, and the character and her take on life and love was convincing. Not everything was wrapped up tidily at the end, which is probably more realistic than most books too. I'd recommend it. "
— Juliana, 12/26/2013" I really liked this book. I never really understood the title though. Did not fit the story at all. "
— Kate, 12/14/2013" the story was a bit thin but i identified with the dad issues so for me it was a candy-read. "
— moppet, 12/3/2013" disappointing follow up to Prep "
— suzy, 12/2/2013" Quick read- very good. Liked it much better than "Prep". Great author-engaging, funny, and realistic "
— Suzanne, 9/11/2013" I love this writer, and this book is so painfully, hilariously familiar, I am considering being her e-stalker. "
— Morven, 5/16/2013" Finally getting a chance to read my friend Curtis' book! That's right...yes, I have had a brush with fame by knowing this NYT best-selling author... ;) "
— Carrie, 8/2/2012" This book was simply terrible. I only finished it because I didn't have anything else to read. "
— Gabrielle, 6/7/2012" This struck a chord w/the teenager in me. "
— Amber, 3/2/2012" To High School Suggested Reading List-y. "
— Christy, 1/12/2012" pretty sucky. if i was going to write a book that was basically about my own life (clearly it was a loose autobiography), i would at least choose the GOOD parts, not the BORING ones. C-. bad news. i'm going to try prep and see if it was as bad. "
— diana, 12/29/2011" It is a quick read if one is craving a fast book. Prep was SO much better. If you want to read about unrequited love, read a period drama. "
— Susie, 9/15/2011" Great writer. Not as addicting as Prep, but still had me reading. "
— Chalida, 7/25/2011" Although I heard mixed reviews, I enjoyed this as much as Prep... "
— Lauren, 6/29/2011" Thought she captured the feeling of being "the girl not chosen" extremely well - I enjoyed it. "
— Susan, 6/18/2011" Not as good as her first book, Prep. It was a little slow to start, but then picked up a bit. Overall not a terrible read but not that interesting either. "
— Dianept, 6/3/2011" Quick read with interesting characters. I found the main character Hannah annoyingly lovable. I enjoyed her evolution to a grown "mature" woman. "
— Linda, 4/7/2011" Cute, easy read. I didn't like it as much as Prep, but it was still good. "
— Amanda, 3/30/2011" <br/>This is a gift from my friend, Cherie. She's playing a prank at me and she put Manny Paquiao's picture at one page and she asked me to read the book wholeheartedly and I know that she's up to something. I peeked and saw the picture. She's crazy! "
— Nicole, 3/21/2011" I read the whole thing in a day ... but I love Curtis, so it's not surprising. Not as good as her others, but still a lot better than most things I read! "
— Kasey, 3/19/2011" I'm kinda disappointed about the ending. :( "
— mikha, 3/13/2011" I do love Curtis Sittenfeld, she has proven herself to be a strong writer. This book just doesn't convey that message though. The storyline is semi-weak, the character development is blah..definitely not her best. "
— Hannah, 3/9/2011" A great story, maybe even better than Prep. Her female characters are at once frustrating and refreshingly honest. Masterfully written ending with some really memorable lines. Very good travel read. "
— Jen, 3/1/2011" in some ways, this feels like a sequel to prep. but whereas i loved prep, this never really did it for me. a quick and enjoyable read but i hazard a guess that a year from now, i won't remember a single detail except maybe that her father tried to force-feed her pasta. "
— Joanna, 1/26/2011Curtis Sittenfeld is the author of several New York Times bestselling works. Her short stories have appeared in the New Yorker, Washington Post magazine, Esquire, and The Best American Short Stories. Her nonfiction has been published in the New York Times, Atlantic, Time, and Glamour and have been broadcast on public radio’s This American Life. She is a graduate of Stanford and the Iowa Writer’s Workshop.
Susan Denaker is an actress and Earphones Award–winning narrator. Her extensive theater credits include numerous plays in the West End of London, national tours, many English rep companies, including a season with Alan Ayckbourn’s company in Scarborough. In the US, she has appeared in Our Town and Sweet Bird of Youth at the La Jolla Playhouse and Breaking Legs at the Westport Playhouse.