Laura’s Book Nook- “Someday, Someday, Maybe”

Lorelai Gilmore wrote a book! Well, not really. The actress who plays Lorelai Gilmore in Gilmore Girls and Sarah Braverman in Parenthood, Lauren Graham, wrote a short novel about the struggles of trying to make it as an actress in New York City, called Someday, Someday, Maybe (published in 2013). It is a lighthearted volume following a fun and quirky lead named Franny Banks, and it really feels like it could easily have been written by Lorelai Gilmore herself. But Lorelai Gilmore is not an accomplished author,  nor is Lauren Graham.

If you are interested in complete and utter predictability, a love triangle with an obviously right and wrong guy, and a 350-page story that only gets slightly interesting at page 300, then this book is for you. Franny Banks is quirky, sure, but not particularly witty or funny, and her story is nothing less than completely cliché. A story about a starving aspiring actress trying to make it big in NYC despite the odds? Wow, I’ve never heard that one before! In fact, I’m pretty sure I know a few of those myself. There is nothing new about this story and Lauren Graham doesn’t add anything to make it special either.

The Wall Street Journal says that it is “authentic and amusing,” and, frankly, I’m confused. And even more surprisingly, Warner Bros and Ellen DeGeneres are teaming up to turn this flop into a TV show, with Graham as an exec-producer alongside DeGeneres and Jeff Kleeman (The Change-Up), and Mae Whitman (Graham’s daughter in Parenthood) as the lead. Though after the first wave of shock at seeing this piece of news, I am decidedly hoping that this will be a rare case where the show is infinitely better than the book. (Fingers crossed.)

Graham clearly aimed this book at a young adult audience, and I think that that could possibly where the problem lies. I would, setting all sarcasm aside, suggest this book to a middle school audience, or a young girl who’s just starting to get into reading. But by all means, I would not suggest this book to any advanced reader looking for intelligent characters, because that is not what you will find. Someday, Someday, Maybe: – 1/5.