Attachments

Attachments

By: Rainbow Rowell


Beth Fremont and Jennifer Scribner-Snyder know that somebody is monitoring their work e-mail. But they can't quite bring themselves to take it seriously. They go on sending each other endless and endlessly hilarious e-mails, discussing every aspect of their personal lives. Meanwhile, Lincoln O'Neill can't believe this is his job now- reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers- not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke. When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories. By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself.

RAINBOW ROWELL HAS DONE IT AGAIN. She made me feel all of the things and care about all of the characters, and that's why she's become one of my favorite authors. I mean, she had me sold on this premise, while under the management of any other author it could turn out incredibly weird, she made it work.

 

The flow, the language, and the characters really shone. I loved watching Lincoln going about his life. It felt normal, like what life is actually like. He had good days and bad days and days that were slow and sort of gray. I just love the portrayal of real life.

Fitting with Rainbow Rowell's strengths, Lincoln felt like a very genuine person. All of his relationships (with his D&D friends, with Justin and Dena, with his mother and sister) were incredibly real.

 

genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.genuine.

 

^^That is exactly what I feel like when writing a review for a Rainbow Rowell book. But I can't say that it's not completely accurate.

 

My favorite part, however, was probably the emails between Jennifer and Beth. They were hilarious, in a incredibly witty way. I wanted to be friends with them, because not only were they funny, they were loyal and kind and great friends to each other. It was spectacular how Rainbow managed to make them 3-D characters in just a few lines of emails to each other, not even describing most of their lives, not even knowing what they looked like.

I loved how you didn't know what they looked like, but you didn't need to. You knew their fears and the things they loved. You (and Lincoln) experienced their essences before ever seeing them in person.

 

The plot moved along like I think a contemporary's plot should. It was sometimes a bit anecdotal, in the best way. There were some meandering scenes that you didn't see how they would fit into the overall plot, but then somehow they did and they added to the atmosphere of the read along the way.

 

This lived up to all the things I have come to expect of a Rainbow Rowell book. I'm pretty certain now that I will read anything and everything that she writes. (Including Landline, that comes out next year and for which I AM SO EXCITED).

 

Quotes:

 

"Tonight it was enough to be one of them. To be someplace where he always had a spot at the table, where everybody already knew that he didn't like olives on his pizza, and they always looked happy to see him."

 

"Every moment feels meant for me. In October...I have faith in my own rising action. I was born in February, but I come alive in October."

 

"It's so easy for someone else to say, "Don't worry. Everything's going to be all right." Why not say it? It doesn't cost anything. It doesn't mean anything. No one will hold you to it if you're wrong."

 

"Things get better--hurt less--over time. If you let them."

 

""So what did you see?"

"Just...the sort of girl who would write the sort of things that you wrote."

"What things?"

"...I pictured a girl who could be that kind, and that kind of funny. I pictured a girl who was that alive...A girl who never got tired of her favorite movies, who save dresses like ticket stubs. Who could get high on the weather... I pictured a girl who made every moment, everything she touched, and everyone around her feel lighter and sweeter. I pictured you."

 

"I didn't know love could leave the lights on all the time."