Customer Reviews

Coffee And Kung Fu

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have read where this book has been placed in the "chick lit" category. Fine - but I have to say that FINALLY there is some smart, interesting chick lit out there.

I am a big fan of the genre, Bridget Jones being a personal favorite. However, in the last little while, I feel as though too much "junk" has been printed in the name of "chick lit".

Finally, Coffee and Kung Fu is a wonderfully written, SMART book. This book will actually make you think about feelings, expectations and loss.

The main character, Nicci, is not adorable, cutesy or perfect. She is actually quite ordinary - which is, of course, part of the charm of this story. What a nice switch of pace - a main character who is actually very ordinary. She doesn't come out with terrifically witty comebacks, doesn't seem to have any money at all, and most surprisingly, very little interest in men, marriage and 2.5 kids.

Although the story tended to lull a little bit (too much Rob) and the Ethan character could have been a little more fleshed out (although this may be intentional on the part of the writer), I would recommend this book to anyone who is tired of reading generic chick lit stuff.

hope this book does "The Nanny Diaries" thing in terms of sales...but I'm always worried when a book I discover from a new author has too much success -- I kind of like to keep the author "mine" for awhile.

Karen Brichoux has a light touch in her first work of fiction, and her sense of humor is outstanding. But neither can hide the extraordinary uniqueness of her voice, and the way she can turn a phrase. She makes pictures with her words, makes thoughts come alive. She's a talent that I hope will not get caught up in a wave of "single girl fiction", and will turn her literary sights on different points of view, different settings, so that others can explore her way with words.

Brichoux's got a single girl story, this one set in Boston, but Nicci, her heroine, is there in body alone. In mind she is flight, touching down on childhood, on life in the Phillipines, on Hong Kong, on loneliness. She defines herself as a "fringe person", but the depth of her is shown in the way others draw to her. She has a triangle in the book, and is forthright and knowing of the difference between who she makes love to and who she loves.

Her relationship with her grandfather is crisp and genuine, and his personification of "shoes" with people is a generational version of her own "kung fu movies" with people's reaction to them. I thought for awhile I might be one of the few women to understand the difference between the meaning of Jackie Chan movies made in the Far East, in Chinese, and the slapdash kung fu movies he does for American audiences. Not so...and if you read "Coffee and Kung Fu", you will find it out for yourself.

Brichoux's dialogue is believable, and scattered throughout the first person narrative in just the right amounts, and some of her literary comparisons will stay with you a long time, whether humorous:

"Maybe it's because November drew Thanksgiving in the holiday lottery.....November got ripped off. What kind of holiday is it when you're supposed to celebrate genocide by stuffing yourself??"

or poetic:

"She's had the moment. A moment isn't a piece of time, it's a question. A realization. A trauma. The moment comes when you look up and see your life stretching out for seventy more years....Is this life good enough for the next seventy years?"

Brichoux - she's a keeper! Read it, enjoy!!!

"Coffee and Kung Fu" is an engaging story about Nicci Bradford, a Boston copywriter floating in a sea of mid-twenties angst. But if angst is the kind of thing that typically turns you off - which I can say for myself - don't be quick to walk away from this story. Nicci is a real heroine, with real ambivalence, and Brichoux puts her on the page in a way that is fresh and wholly endearing.

"Coffee" follows Nicci through a series of trials - a mysterious coffee guy who somehow knows her thoughts; a rich, attractive boyfriend who is the picture of everything she should want; a confused friend who puts Nicci in the middle of her toxic marriage. Through it all, Nicci relies on her store of Kung Fu movie knowledge to provide her with essential wisdom and perspective.

The thing about "Coffee and Kung Fu" that makes it a great read is Brichoux's mastery of gentle pacing and subtle humor. Nicci's story is full of fresh flavors, perfect for curling up with by the fire on a rainy day with a cup of coffee and a Jackie Chan movie waiting by your side.

It has been a loooong time since a book has really spoken to me like this one - maybe never before! I picked this book up because I liked the cover, to be honest. Once I read the first few pages I couldn't wait to see how Nicci gets through. I totally related to her, in my opinion this is NOT your average lonely girl in the city novel, it speaks to the plights of young women everywhere. I am not a kung fu fan but there's only a paragraph or two in each chapter that relates a kung fu movie to her current situation, so don't let the kung fu thing stop you at all. The author Karen B is extremely talented at taking normal Nicci and her normal problems and situations and revealing the subtle life-chaning nuances in life's small moments that stun in hindsight. 'Coffee and Kung Fu' is a captivating, quick read, it is great and I've recommended it to all my friends. THIS BOOK WOULD MAKE A GREAT MOVIE!

What a wonderful book! COFFEE & KUNG FU blurs the lines between the Chick Lit genre and mainstream literature. While utilizing some of the Chick Lit conventions - urban setting, dead end job, Mr. Wrong - Karen Brichoux has portrayed her heroine, Nicci Bradford, with a thoughtfulness that delves much deeper than most books of the genre.

Nicci Bradford is a young woman of unconventional upbringing who attempts - sometimes with a tinge of desperation - to adapt to a conventional lifestyle. Poignantly, and often humorously, Brichoux guided me through Nicci's journey to discover herself. I rooted for her, despaired with her, and finally exulted in Nicci's discovery of who she is and where she belongs.

To this sensitive characterization, add a solid story line and prose that vividly portrays Nicci's background, and you come up with a winner. This is a deeply satisfying read - Chick Lit for the thoughful reader.

I thoroughly enjoyed Karen Brichoux's debut novel -- couldn't put it down. I become attached to the characters & simply had to know how the book ended before I feel asleep. Nicci Bradford is a complicated, unconventional woman trying to find her way in a quirky world. Her strengths & weaknesses appeal to everyone.

Karen Brichoux does a marvelous job recreating Nicci's memories of Manila & the Philipines with her artistic prose. And the emotional interplay between the characters is insightful, humorous & witty. There's so much included that you could read it twice & find out things you missed the first time. Kudos to Karen Brichoux!!

Heroine: Average

Copy editor Nicci Bradford is trying to maintain her sanity in a lonely world. But it's difficult to do when she's busy accidentally supplying the comic relief in the movie of her own life and navigating through a tricky maze of interpersonal relationships with friends, family and coworkers.

Fortunately Nicci has a guru of sorts to see her through the worst of times. Whenever she encounters a sticky situation, she simply reflects back on her vast Jackie Chan movie collection and brings up a pearl of wisdom to apply to the problem. And when the going gets really rough, Nicci pops a Jackie Chan flick into the VCR, peels the lid off of a can of Pringles, and flops down onto her futon couch fully prepared to absorb still more wisdom of the ages, as well as a little fat and sodium.

But what should Nicci do when she runs into an issue that Jackie has no answer for? Say, physically running down an extremely handsome, rich, funny and available business client in the hallway at work? One who wants to take an embarrassed yet intrigued Nicci to dinner--against company policy?

What worked for me:

The politically, religiously, and culturally cynical Nicci really resonated with me. I enjoyed eavesdropping on her thoughts as she tried to make sense of a seemingly senseless world.

The author used a soft touch when including some deep subjects in an otherwise light story. It made for a good balance: I didn't feel like I was smothering in fluff, but I wasn't completely dragged down either. (Well, except for those two crying jags. But I didn't stay down after I reached the end of the story, and that's what counts with me.)

As a kung fu flick widow I can proudly say that I recognized every Jackie movie mentioned in the story. Frankly, I thought that the film references presented a fascinating way to compare the two cultures which have shaped the main character. (If you are interested in East/West cultural contrasts of this sort, look into the love story "Iron and Silk". Though I haven't yet read it I imagine the book is wonderful. However, I can vouchsafe for the fact that the movie is absolutely breathtaking. It goes without saying that you can't capture the martial art of Wu Shu in words the way you can on film.)

Size-wise Nicci was your everyday girl next-door, complete with cellulite, which she didn't think too much about except when she was required to wear a clingy dress.

What didn't work for me:

Nicci is just like any other friend for whom you can see better than she can the choices she ought to make for herself. This is as uncomfortable to deal with in fiction as it is in reality. My fingernails are now all at least a quarter of an inch shorter than when I began reading this book.

Overall:

With its witty, wonderful prose and a heroine worth rooting for, "Coffee and Kung Fu" is ushering in a new trend in the Chick Lit genre: edgy without setting your teeth on edge. Be sure to pop it in your beach bag this summer!

Warning: there are some coarse words, spicy sexual moments, a brief reference to abortion, and a risk of staying up all night sucking down this story, which may in turn result in your needing at least 6 cups of real joe to stay awake the next day.

If you liked "Coffee and Kung Fu" you might also enjoy "Blushing Pink", "Getting Over It", "Bridget Jones's Diary", "Good in Bed", "Last Chance Saloon", "Jemima J." and "Having It and Eating It".

This is one of the most smartly-written books I've come across. It's a great first novel, and I'm already watching out for her next book.

I was impressed by Brichoux's humor and wit, as well as the insightful details she brings to her characters.

This book had some great points: I sympathized with Nicci's mixed feelings about going home again, isolation in a new, big city, and her relationships with her family members. I thought the relationship with her grandfather was very well written, touching and realistic. There were some genuinely funny parts, situations everyone can relate to (horribly boring mandatory office parties, confusion over guys, and dealing with too many forks at dinner!) and some parts that made me cry.

While some of the kung fu vignettes seemed relevant and important to include, as the book went on they seemed increasingly tacked on and disconnected from the point of the story. I know that her love of those movies was supposed to set Nicci apart from the typical chick-lit heroine, but several just seemed like an afterthought, inserted in after the author remembered that the title of the books included kung fu. Also, too much focus on Rob, not enough character development of Ethan, and too many sub-plots took away from the general flow of the narrative and left a lot of questions that could've been answered with more succinct writing.

Karen Brichoux's debut novel rises above the muck and mire that represents so much of today's "chick-lit" though the clever use of literary device-in this case, focusing the narcissism and angst of the 20-something urban dating scene through the lens of Kung-Fu philosophy, or at least as much Kung-Fu philosophy as one can derive from endless watching of Bruce Lee movies. Te result is an enchanting and nimble novel that far transcends the norm of this genre.

The novels protagonist is Nicci Bradford, a 20-something stuck in a mindless and boring job as a copywriter at a Boston publisher (why are all these chicks always stuck in dea end publishing jobs in these novels?) who lives alone and is incredibly lonely (imaging that!) Her coworkers are sympathetic to her plight and try to set her up with a stream of guys, all of whom are evaluated through the Kung-Fu lens, and all of whom are found wanting.

Finally one of the company's customers latches on to Nicci and Phase 2 of the chick-lit formula kicks in-Nicci is no longer lonely but angst's over the fact her new beau isn't perfect-risch, handsme and engaging, yes-but not perfect, except in bed. (There he's superlative and his superlative-ness is detailed in fairly explicit detail.)

Of course in the middle of all this the young, goofy-looking poor guy enters into the picture and Nicci is further torn about her romantic life.

The rest is pretty much rote for the genre. There are no major surprises and, basically, the fundamental story is highly formulaic.

However, the constant ruminations, evaluation and consideration of what's happening as juxtaposed with the worldview and philosophy of the Kung-Fu films is truly entertaining. Moreover, Nicci is much more a complete person as a character than is the norm for this particular genre. The characters are pretty well developed and the storyline, thought hardly innovative, still is better than average. The writing is well above average. The story's fairly steamy in spots but never in an offending way.

All in all, it adds up to highly entertaining beach type reading.