Jenny Feldon

Wow. I hope this woman, Jenny Feldon, was exaggerating about herself in an attempt to be funny. I kept reading, hoping she would change her attitude, but as of the halfway point she had not, not even the slightest bit, so I slammed the book shut and will add it to my "Bailed" shelf. The paperback itself will go back to the annual library book sale from whence it came. That is, if COVID19 ever allows us to have book sales again.

The only thing I liked about this book was her husband and his aversion to germs and his "sleeping hat". I myself have a "sleeping hat" that I wear in the winter in L.A. because I don't have heat so my head freezes without a hat.

I first got mad at her in the prologue when she said she'd be riding elephants. PEOPLE. PLEASE! Do not ride elephants!!! Elephants are not "trained" to allow human idiots to ride on their backs, they are horribly abused until their spirits and will are broken. Google it.

Ok, so back to Jenny and her husband, Jay, both age 27 and married less than a year. Old enough to have some common sense! Did they do ANY research before agreeing to move from New York to India for 2 years? Apparently not.

Examples of their stupidity:

Didn't bring a thermometer or any kind of medicine, such as aspirin, Tylenol, Advil. Nothing. When she finally found one "The digital thermometer read 38.3. Celsius. Damn it. I had no idea what that meant. Feeling useless, I sat with him until he fell back into a restless sleep."

Doesn't think to bring money when she goes out. "I didn't even have money with me. The useless AmEx was still in my pocket."

Gets upset when she, the woman, the wife, isn't allowed to sign for a delivery and doesn't think for herself to call her husband to tell him the delivery people are waiting. THEY suggest to her that she call him.

Obviously didn't research the country because she didn't even know that different regions of India have different types of food. Um, hello! Do you know how big India is? Think about the country in which you live, Jenny. Does the USA have only one type of food? Come on, Lady! Jesus.

How do they not know that things like laundry service are provided by either the company or the building where they live? Did you people not get any informational brochures or think to ask questions?

I love how her husband, Jay, snuggled in bed with the dog and wearing his sleeping hat, is so fed up with Jenny and her lameness. She wakes him up to tell him there's a flood in the kitchen and he's all "Household issues are your administrative responsibility. This is my morning to sleep in; my first meeting isn't till ten. Can you reset the air conditioner when you leave? The dog and I are hot."

Bwaaaaa haaaa haaaa!!!! Normally I would not tolerate such comments, but if this woman was really, truly, as she describes herself, then she deserved it.… (más)

Full review here: The Steadfast Reader - Karma Gone Bad

Really, it only took me two days to finish this book? It felt like forever.

Okay, so about this. I hated the narrator for the first 75% of the book, she came across as spoiled, xenophobic, and incredibly overprivileged. It was a string of complaints and insecurities. (Oh no! I can't get a latte! Why are all these brown people staring at me?! Why can't they wait in line properly like Americans!) She manages to redeem herself the last quarter of the book by at least making the effort to enjoy and embrace Indian culture.

I've lived abroad (3 years), yeah, things are done differently, but I feel like that narrator dismisses other cultures as 'less than' because they're not American (or even western). Overall this book annoyed me more than it enlightened me.

(This review is based on an advance review copy supplied through NetGalley by the publisher.)… (más)