I’ve copied and pasted the body of the review below if you’d like to read it. |
Summer’s fast approaching and if you’re looking for the perfect beach read, look no further than Paige Nick’s This Way Up.
Stella du Preez has the perfect life. Well almost. She is married to a great man. She has a great, supportive family. She lives in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Her friends are the best. But … well, her job isn’t great. As the sex column agony aunt, Dr Dee, she has to deal with an almost unending slew of queries about the ickiest of things when all she really wants is to be taken seriously as a journalist. Then, just when it seems like things can’t get worse on the work front, Stella’s dream job – of features writer – is given to the all-too-likeable Thandi.
Upset and disappointed, Stella calls Max to tell him what has happened, but instead she tells a small untruth – a little white lie – that slowly but surely unravels her whole perfect world.
I first came across Paige Nick’s writing in her weekly column in the Sunday Times. A Million Miles from Normal is a truly South African column full of wit, humour, sarcasm and africanisms that only us South African’s get when we’re laughing at ourselves. Naturally, I jumped at the chance to review This Way Up.
This fabulous novel is about two very different women. The first is Stella a woman who seems to have everything except the perfect job. The second is Poppy a spunky pink-haired twenty-something hitchhiking across America looking for the next big thrill.
These two narratives run simultaneously next to each other; hand in hand like two friends in the park. It takes a rather skilled writer to pull this off and Paige does it with flair that is salt-and-peppered with humour and awkward moments.
It was a tad bit unsettling being thrown from Cape Town to hitchhiking through America, and it took some time trying to adjust myself to here and there in a matter of pages. However, you do get used to it and – in fact – you can’t help but start wanting to know what happens next with each character. This is a true Paige Nick tale of different women carving their own way through their lives and taking responsibility for it – or at least, that’s what I took away from it.
Thank you Kelly. And thank you dear readers, who are still here and didn’t click off to find some decent porn after you realised in the fourth sentence that I was talking about my book, and there was no sex, smutt or meme’s to be found anywhere in this post. 🙂
Paige!!! I am buying your book. I am, I swear! After months of promising myself no-more-books because of the stack that stares me in the eye accusingly when I try to sleep, I swear I will break my vow for you.
But please please, pretty please with sheep’s head on top, bring back a less NSFW picture as the header!!! I managed to fast-scroll through the last one and assumed my cubicle neighbours may get confused into believing am an animal lover, but with this?! I have no hopes. No doubts = no job = no buying your books lady 🙁
Hey RK, how’s that? 🙂
OMG! You are my new BFF dudette 🙂 What say we raise some money in the name of world peace (The Gandhi name may be invoked in both locations I guess ;)) and create our own…
(drumroll)
(more drumroll)
THE SIMPLE LIFE!!!
P.S: Me loveth the piceth. Me thanketh you. 🙂
enjoy it while it lasts, back to tits and ass next week. 🙂
Sigh… A weekend of joy in this profoundly miserable world… (holding back tears)
🙂 🙂 🙂