Rock n' Roll Toll: The Grass is Never Cleaner

Once I started reading Lauren Weisberger's latest, Where The Grass Is Green And The Girls Are Pretty, I couldn't put it down.  The writing is smart, the plot is engrossing, and the characters are sympathetic.  Even when they've done something awful.  For this is one of those novels about privileged people behaving badly.  And the privileged people on, ahem, trial here are superstar anchorwoman Peyton Marcus and, to a lesser degree, her sister, stay-at-home mom Skye Alter.    

Despite their different lifestyles, the fortyish sisters are close, enjoying the kind of tongue-in-cheek repartee exclusive to those who've come from the same womb.  Indeed, the title's Guns N' Roses reference is about a concert the sisters snuck off to (they told their mom they were going to see James Taylor), reminding us that they're partners in crime.  And now Peyton lives in The Big Apple, whereas Skye's in a suburb called Paradise -- even though it's anything but.  Peyton and Skye may poke fun at each other and harbor their little jealousies.  Yet when it comes to the outside world, they remain a united front.  But that bond is brutally tested when Peyton and her husband are accused of breaking the law.

Now, as I mentioned, these sisters are pampered, making them targets.  Especially in terms of the following detour, which I've charmingly named, not target, but "tangent time."  

Where The Grass Is Green And The Girls Are Pretty perpetuates my least-favorite trope about feminine beauty, i.e., the Madonna/whore-like mindset dictating that all women are either 1) so pure that they don't care how they look or 2) so consumed by their appearance that it ruins their lives.  In this case, it's bohemian Skye who never wears makeup (but still looks gorgeous!) and ratings queen Peyton who subjects herself to Botox and chemical peels.  Surely, most women fall somewhere in the middle of this polarizing cosmetic spectrum (Lipstick?  Yes, please!  Needles?  Not if you paid me!).  Nevertheless, Weisberger is so skilled in her development of Peyton and Skye that they never come off as stereotypes.  Spoiled?  Sometimes.  One-dimensional?  Never.  I could tell because I cared what happened to them.

Still with me?  Good. Tangent time over!

Where The Grass Is Green And The Girls Are Pretty isn't as much about right and wrong as it is about relationships.  Sister-sister, husband-wife, and mother-daughter.  Peyton is the common denominator in all three, and as such is forced to reframe how she relates to her nearest and dearest.  And things get pretty ugly before she understands that it's not Emmys, country clubs, or prestigious schools, but authenticity with her loved ones that matters.

So.  If you like scandal and satire wrapped up in heart, then Where The Grass Is Green And The Girls Are Pretty is the sharp but fetching flamingo on your library's green -- but not too green -- front lawn.