You Could Do Better [Paperback]

Stephanie Lehmann (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2006

The acclaimed author of The Art of Undressing asks: How do you know he's the one?

Daphne Wells is way too busy watching television to start planning her wedding. She tells herself being glued to the boob tube counts as research for her job at the Museum of Television and Radio, but the truth is, as much as she's looking forward to a future with her fiancé, Charlie, their sex life just isn't ready for prime time. But then Daphne meets sexy, successful writer/ producer Jonathan Hill when he comes to the museum for inspiration. Daphne spends a week in the Hamptons at Jonathan's beach house-on business, of course-but the picture comes in loud and clear: this man can turn her on. She's more confused than ever about marrying Charlie. What if she can do better?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Daphne Wells would rather watch the latest episode of Supermodels than have sex with her fiancé, Charlie. After all, she rationalizes, it is part of her job as a curator at the Museum of Television and Radio in New York City to stay on top of the trends. As the reality of her engagement sets in, Daphne turns to her older sister, jet-setting model Billie, for support as she tries to convince herself that schoolteacher Charlie is the one. It's a tough sell, especially after Daphne meets Jonathan Hill, a sexy television producer, who makes her realize that what's missing is passion. As Charlie puts the screws to Daphne about booking a reception hall, she and her sister get swept up in Jonathan's exhilarating lifestyle: after a weekend in the Hamptons with Jonathan, Daphne decides to go after the man of her dreams (read: the rich guy). There are few surprises to be found between these covers, but readers looking for fluffy fare and pleasant, light humor will be sated. (Aug. 1)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Although Daphne Wells is living with a nice young man (in a perhaps too comfortable arrangement), her most intense relationship is with the television set. Yes, she works at the Museum of Television and Radio in New York, but she is also very involved with her own personal TV and the people who inhabit it. Then, when the writer-producer of her favorite show comes into the museum, she feels the shortness of breath and tingles she should be feeling with her fiance. Daphne convinces him to allow her to do a piece about him, and he invites her and her sister, Billie, to his home in the Hamptons. Daphne schemes to bring him and her sister together, thereby freeing herself of Billie's dependence and any confusion she feels regarding her fiance. But things don't sort themselves out the way Daphne wants them to in this very funny tale. And just when it seems that it's all about the laughs, Lehmann switches gears and introduces true poignancy. Maria Hatton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: NAL Trade (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 045121854X
• ISBN-13: 978-0451218544
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,667,676 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I grew up in San Francisco, went to UC Berkeley, and moved to New York City to go to graduate school at NYU. I still live in Manhattan with my husband and two teenage kids who are growing up way too fast.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars One to skip, February 2, 2007

By 

Always Reading (sunny california) - See all my reviews

This review is from: You Could Do Better (Paperback)

Thank goodness I checked this book out of the library instead of buying it because it was absolutely awful. I'd recommend against reading this, but if you absolutely have to, go to the library instead of the bookstore. Eek.

From page 1, Daphne is completely unlikeable. Her live-in boyfriend wants to propsoe to her, but she's more excited about watching TV and then, after accepting his proposal, is glad he's too tired to have sex. She goes on to complain about how their love life is far from hot. The book continues with her having trouble telling everyone about her engagement because she isn't very excited, and then she meet Johnathan, a rich TV producer, and becomes interested in him.

Standard chick lit. Which is fine, as I enjoy chick lit. The problem is how it's written.

Every character, instead of describing their appearance, is summed up in lines like, "She reminded me of Ruth on All My Children" or "He was so cute, in an Adrian Grenier from Entourage sort of way." Mmm-hmm. And if you haven't watched these shows, you're sort of out of the loops. It doesn't stop there either - everything is compared to something that's on TV because Daphne works for the Museum of Television and Radio. It's just way overdone and gets more than irritating. I began to want the book to have more of a plot than rehasing incidents from TV.

You feel no sympathy for Daphne. Sure, her love life might not be as red hot as she wants it to be, but she's the one who picked her boyfriend as a partner, and she's clearly making no effort to change matters; all she wants to do is for him to leave her alone with her TV shows. She comes across as extremely shallow and unlikeable, not caring how she's hurting him in her pursuit of another guy. The chemistry between Daphne and the new guy, Jonathan, isn't all that convincing, and you wonder why she's so intent on destroying the relationship with Charlie, the boyfriend who may not be great in the sack but clearly loves her and is doing whatever he can for her. From her descriptions of him he's clearly loathed - truly, HE could do better.

I couldn't read past a quarter of the way into the book, it was just that bad. I ended up flipping through the rest of the novel to see what happened, just out of morbid curiosity. I wasn't too impressed, but that was to be expected.

There are many more, many BETTER chick lit novels out there. Do yourself a favor and read one of those instead.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Smart, Funny Novel., August 16, 2006

By 

toby ornot (Berkeley) - See all my reviews

This review is from: You Could Do Better (Paperback)

A smart, funny novel.

Like Stephanie Lehmann's earlier novels, YOU COULD DO BETTER is funny and entertaining while also digging deep. She touches on some of her favorite subjects: sex, guilt, death, sibling rivalry... And she also has her main character Daphne face something that's a challenge for many women: asking for what you want! I don't want to give away the story, but I really identified as Daphne grew to realize that it was okay for her -- that she even deserved -- to "do better," whether it was at her job at The Museum of Television, in her relationships, or in bed...

One of the interesting and fun things about this novel is how the author has worked in a decade by decade history of television. For example, you can find out how Lucille Ball changed the entire industry (and became incredibly rich and powerful in the process) because she wanted to keep her husband Desi from cheating on her.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lucy McMichael, September 10, 2006

By 

L. Mcmichael "actress" (New York City) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: You Could Do Better (Paperback)

I loved the book. The characters are so real. They stay with you long after you've finished reading the book. I also really liked all the tv trivia. The main character works at the Museum of Television and Broadcasting.