Customer Reviews

A Most Uncommon Degree of Popularity

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I know most people would not.

Seidel has long been one of my favorite authors because she is very thoughtful and wise about human behaviors. Her characters are very real and go through an arc of self-exploration and self-discovery that seems true, and their small-scale successes and believable triumphs of the spirit. They make you want to get your own life--or at least your own dwelling--in order and perspective.

Not much happens in this novel of four suburban "soccer moms" and their daughters' entrance into the world of middle school socialization--if we're talking about action. Instead, we see what it means for well-educated, career women to focus their considerable talents on motherhood, how it impacts their marriages and their self-esteem and their priorities, not to mention their concept of themselves as women, wives, and mothers.

The issue of popularity and teenage girls is the ostensible focus, but this tale of manners covers far more ground than you would think. I should note that the title is taken from Jane Austen's Emma, and Seidel is, like Austen, quite the sharp and observant mistress of her little bit of ivory.

I docked the book a star because it is not a book you can wholeheartedly recommend to anyone...not in our action-oriented society. But you don't have to be a mom of a certain class to enjoy it--I am neither--you have to care about insight-driven novels. I do and I loved A Most Uncommon Degree of Popularity, even though it is unlikely that the book will achieve that status.

I have nothing in common with the characters of this book. I do not have kids or a husband but I was enthralled by this book. I read it in one sitting strangely caught up in the lives of Erin and Lydia. Seidel uses such warm, delicate languange when describing the links between the middle school girls and their mothers. Seidel portrays the agony of adolescence, the insecurity of adults and the yearning for the familiar and safe so well. It's a warm slice of someone else's life.

I love novels, but I find I'm increasingly drawn to non-fiction; fiction often leaves me with a "Eh...so what?" feeling because it didn't really happen. But this bright, readable novel felt very real to me. To use a cliche, I'd say it "spoke" to my life where I am right now: a mother with teen and preteen sons, who is esquisitely (obsessively?) attuned to every social in-and-out in their lives. Especially, oh the agony, of the inevitable "outs." Highly recommended.

I am a long time fan of Ms. Seidel's romances! What a delight to get my hands on her latest book dealing with a topic that is so near and dear to many hearts: mothers and daughters. Ms. Seidel stretches her golden literary wings soaring into the vivid and perfectly real lives of her characters. This is what she does so very well. I was absorbed and captivated by the web of relationships which tugged at my deepest emotions, making me crave more. I felt a close connection with Erin. As a teenager I had worn her shoes. As a mother, I trembled at the many connections I made to the phenomenon of "Helicopter moms" put forth so lucidly in Ms. Seidels sparkling and often edgy prose. I know many readers will identify with many aspects of these characters. Ms. Seidel has an honored place alongside my favorite literary ladies: Jane Austen, Judy Blume, and Harper Lee.

I am a middle school teacher and I thought that this book did a nice job of portraying the turmoil, emotions, and drama that many middle school girls experience. As I was reading I often thought, "This would be such a good book for some of the moms of my girls to read." I read the book in just a couple of days because I found it very engaging and easy to relate to. There were definitely a lot of topics and issues in this book which at some times felt too overwhelming. The depth which each topic could be developed did not always meet my expectations since there was so much crammed in - school issues, Lydia's social place, her husband's case, Erin and her friends, the new girl- Faith, the new administrator- Chris. Lot of conflicts which kept things interesting, but again, I would have liked to see some of the situations developed more to really allow for me to connect with the characters. Please read this if you have an adolescent daughter who struggles with friends, cliques, and self-esteem... and don't they all?

I almost dismissed this book because of its cover. I even read the summary on the back and rolled my eyes. This is not the sort of book I would pick up automatically, not even as a guilty pleasure, and yet - I found myself completely engrossed, sitting on the floor of my local Barnes and Noble, hanging on every word.
A Most Uncommon Degree of Popularity is extremely insightful and Seidel's gentle analysis of social cues and community behaviors suggest that she has great psychological and sociological insight. Yes, it's a "trivial" novel about a stay-at-home mom who once graduated from law school, and the intertwining social lives of middle school girls and their mothers. But Seidel is both intelligent and entertaining enough that it works - extremely well.
I particularly liked Seidel's description of nearby Washington, D.C. as a "theme park version of a small town" - suburban, but where Coach and American Eagle have replaced family-owned stores, and the pressure for every family to be a model of upper-middle class perfection is growing by the day. I grew up in a town like this, and I found the author's insight detailed and accurate.
I found it interesting in the "Readers' Group" section that Seidel wrote an essay which essentially invites us to reevaluate the common stereotype of the "popular girls." The book certainly does that, but with subtlety, whereas in the essay Seidel describes how her experiences with her unfairly targeted popular daughter largely inspired the book. Her ideas are thought-provoking, but as someone who was in middle school a lot more recently than the author, I am tempted after reading the book to counter-argue, "I understand what you're saying, but plenty of these girls actually are ___!" (Fill in the blank - rude, sleazy, power-hungry - think "Mean Girls," the movie.) The point is, however, that the book is more about a mother than middle-school girls (they have very little overall dialogue); I just found the idea of the popular girl stereotype as one giant myth to be a little far-fetched.
The last third of the book, I'll agree, was a bit problematic - I've docked Seidel a star. But overall, I'd happily recommend the book to anyone; and my guess is that for those of us who are not moms/suburban socialites/wives, the book will be an even more fascinating peek into lifestyle which has surprising potential for the modern novel.

As with all first person narratives, if you don't love the narrator, it's hard to like the book. Lydia is a warm, outgoing mother of two who's also an ex lawyer living a rich suburban DC life. What's interesting is that it's hard to really like her yet so easy to relate to her. She's incredibly human as a character and watching her go through the whole range of emotions in dealing with her husband, her children, her children's school, her friends, it's hard not to root for her, even if you aren't a mom and aren't in her socio-economic circumstances. But she's a bit heavy handed when it comes to justifying her nouveau-richness and sometimes you want to scream at her for her egocentricity and inability to detach herself. Still, the point is she is human with human failings like the rest of us and her view is so well written that I admittedly had trouble putting the book down.

I would have enjoyed this much more had it been a big spoof on privileged parents which for some reason I thought it might be. Not. Lydia et al seemed waaay too over-involved in their kids' lives. And way too serious about it. Are you kidding?? I LOVE and am honored and relieved to be the one to bring paper products to school functions. The other thing that seemed a bit off was the middle schoolers I know and love really don't want their parents hovering and micro managing all school events. Volunteering and being involved in one's kids' lives is excellent but at times I wanted to shout at Lydia, "Whose needs are you meeting?!? Yours or your childrens?!?" I did really like Erin...she seemed like a nice girl. And I agree with some other readers that the bit about Chris in the 2nd half didn't flow with the earlier part of the book.

Taking the title of the book from Jane Austen's Emma was an inspired choice for Seidel's latest. Instead of the country village of Austen's setting, "Popularity" is set in the hothouse atmosphere of a small school community. It's an interesting translation of the power struggles, gossip, and human damage people in "villages" can inflict on one another to the 20th century. Who was it who said that power struggles in academia were so vicious because the stakes were so small? In this case, Lydia, her daughter and their friends become caught up in other peoples' wars. The "old timers" in the administration and alums of a private school want things to remain the way they were in the good old days, and resent new parents and a new principal who are bringing change. An old alum transfers her daughter to the school and manipulates events to make the child one of the "popular" girls, at the expense of Lydia's daughter Erin.

Seidel's exploration of what degree of parental involvement in their children's lives is healthy is certainly topical (see Wiseman's Queen Bee Mothers and King Pin Dads). What is the line between standing up for your child against an insensitive teacher, and bullying schools to advance your daughter/son beyond what is educationally appropriate? What is the difference between "helping" on a school project and writing it for the kid?

Although the background of the book is fascinating, the characters are the focus of Seidel's work. Lydia's struggles to find her authentic self make gripping reading as she looks back on her life as a working mother, then soccer mom, and emerging artist. A week-long visit to a workaholic husband provides an hilarious look at "Lydia attempting to be a trophy wife" (not a success). In the course of the book Lydia and her husband do succeed in establishing a tentative new basis for the marriage.

Best of all, these are characters that I could identify with and enjoy spending an afternoon with. When the book ends, you sigh and think, I really liked those people and enjoyed sharing their joys and sorrows. How often do you feel that way about a book these days? I'll miss Seidel in the romance genre, but I'll definitely buy her women's fiction books in the future.

If you are familiar with Kathy Seidel's other works this latest one is a departure from her usual romance novel but will not disappoint. This book is all about relationships, and Kathy has a way of not only understanding these complex creatures but of writing about them in a clever, humerous and novel way. The characters were all well-developed, and I found myself cheering for some and hissing at others. I found myself as caught up in the lives of the various characters as the "heroine" is caught up in the lives of her children. A great read.