Lena Dunham is an American filmmaker and actress. She wrote and directed the independent film Tiny Furniture (2010), and is the creator and star of the HBO series Girls. In 2013, Dunham was named one of Time's most influential people in the world.
On October 8, 2012, Dunham signed a $3.5 million deal with Random House to publish her first book, an essay collection called Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's Learned.
Lena Dunham is terrifically talented, and this serialized novel published in Vogue kept me tuning in to read. I think my problem with the book is that I wanted more....more insight into Ally’s personality, a and a bit more of an ending. Just more. I will read anything Denham writes because it’s always compelling.
That was most definitely a let down! I really enjoyed the format of reading a chapter a day and having a say in some of the outcome as the book was written. However, the book itself really never went anywhere even with that so called ending where it tried to make Ally "grow up and adult" a little.
This Vogue series by Lena Dunham was disappointing. The story felt disjointed and erratic. Not what I expect from this author who I typically devour and shower with praise. I wouldn’t recommend.
Das Format, in dem auf vogue.com jeden Tag ein einzelnes Kapitel veröffentlicht wurde, hat mir sehr gut gefallen – und kommt meinem aktuell etwas lese-unfreundlichen Leben doch sehr entgegen.
Auch die Idee, die Leser an den entscheidenden Wendepunkten der Handlung deren Entwicklung bestimmen zu lassen, finde ich sehr spannend. Jedoch sorgt dies in diesem Fall dafür, dass die Geschichte nirgends hinführt und Figuren haarsträubende Veränderungen durchleben.
Das Ergebnis: Ein vorgeschriebenes Ende, das sich kaum bis gar nicht aus der Gesamthandlung ergibt und so eher plump daherkommt. Da täuschen auch der Witz und das moderne Frauenbild einer Lena Dunham nicht drüber hinweg...
Was a fun idea! The story took weird twists and turns because it was up to the audience to guide the story. Enjoyed reading a new chapter each day and the final felt well wrapped up, but a tad rushed.
I wanted to like this because the concept was so unique with each chapter being released on Vogue’s website, but I didn’t feel like the story was well developed enough. I wanted to know more about the characters - even though none of them were really “like able” - and felt like some of the cliff hangers / questions that were asked of the readers to prompt the next chapter didn’t really deliver strongly enough. It was a fast enough read that I felt like I wanted to give it a chance and finish it but not sure I’d recommend it.
This is a serialized novel published in in Vogue Magazine (Vogue.com) in March/April 2020. Dunham wrote daily installments (sometime with reader input deciding next steps) for about 3 weeks. I thoroughly enjoyed this romance about a 30-something under achiever in Los Angeles trying to overcome heartbreak while learning how to find out what she really wants and needs out of life. Once I started reading, I truly could not stop. I was interrupted by a previously arranged breakfast date and still couldn't wait to get back to the story. The dialogue is fizzy and smart, the interior life of the characters is deep and revelatory, and the whole thing is modern and true. TBH, I was not a big an of Ms. Dunham's first non-fiction book, but this is a whole other side of a multi-faceted artist who manages to bit witty and knowing at the same time.
Really enjoyed the format on Vogue of getting to read a chapter each day and have a say in what happens next by voting on Instagram. Would love to read more stories in this format, just with more substance and intrigue.
This was an entertaining typical millennial story. A single woman in her 30's living in LA and the men/people she's surrounded by and interacts with, it practically writes itself. Good for what it was, but I wouldn't go out of my way to read a hard copy published book of it.
I was really looking forward to the idea of an author writing a series based on direction from her readers. The first chapters were great, I could really relate to the main character Ally. But things got complicated when she became interested in other characters. The last chapter was very disappointing. I would recommend if you are looking for a quick read. But much of this series follows the same path as her show Girls.
I admire Lena Dunham for releasing her book early and at no cost to anyone during the current COVID-19 Pandemic. I also liked being able to vote at the end of each chapters to determine where the story would go next. Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy the writing or the story. I felt as if it was written for teenagers. I am a huge Lena Dunham fan & really wanted to love this book.
I really liked the concept of publishing the novel chapter by chapter and letting readers give their input but I wish the book would have been longer. There were way too many characters for a story this short and it all moved very fast when I would have gladly spend much more time with these people.
I absolutely adore Lena’s prose as usual, I think she’s quite talented and the chapters really kept me wanting more. It was very easy to read an enjoy. I didn’t like the ending, though. I think it was too rushed, would have needed more development.
Interesting format, reminded me of reading Sweet Valley High books as a kid. Getting one chapter a day was something night to look forward to each day of quarantine.
I loved the premise of this work and that readers got to vote for how they wanted the story to go. It was a fun and quick read that very much reminded me of Girls. I wasn't the biggest fan of the end, it felt abrupt - but also know that this was written on a daily basis. I absolutely think this story could grow into a full-on novel.