Certain Girls (Reprint) (Paperback) by Jennifer Weiner

About the Book

Described by "The Miami Herald" as a breezy, sweetly oddball urban fairy tale, this sequel to the bestselling "Good in Bed" picks up with an older, wiser, and thinner Cannie Shapiro raising her 13-year-old daughter, Joy.

Book Synopsis

Readers fell in love with Cannie Shapiro, the smart, sharp-tongued, bighearted heroine of Good in Bed who found her happy ending after her mother came out of the closet, her father fell out of her life, and her ex-boyfriend started chronicling their ex-sex life in the pages of a national magazine.

Now Cannie's back. After her debut novel -- a fictionalized (and highly sexualized) version of her life -- became an overnight bestseller, she dropped out of the public eye and turned to writing science fiction under a pseudonym. She's happily married to the tall, charming diet doctor Peter Krushelevansky and has settled into a life that she finds wonderfully predictable -- knitting in the front row of her daughter Joy's drama rehearsals, volunteering at the library, and taking over-forty yoga classes with her best friend Samantha.

As preparations for Joy's bat mitzvah begin, everything seems right in Cannie's world. Then Joy discovers the novel Cannie wrote years before and suddenly finds herself faced with what she thinks is the truth about her own conception -- the story her mother hid from her all her life. When Peter surprises his wife by saying he wants to have a baby, the family is forced to reconsider its history, its future, and what it means to be truly happy.

Radiantly funny and disarmingly tender, with Weiner's whip-smart dialogue and sharp observations of modern life, Certain Girls is an unforgettable story about love, loss, and the enduring bonds of family.

Review Quotes

A daughter's journey through teen angst to realizations about family, acceptance, love, and the nature of truth. -- Elle magazine's Elle's Letters Readers' Prize April Winner

Clear your calendar and prepare to read: Cannie Shapiro is back! Weiner is a talented writer who consistently delivers the goods. Readers will laugh and cry... -- Library Journal (starred review)

Filled with family tumult (lesbian mother, rebellious teenage daughter, nutjob sister), career uncertainty, heart wrenching plot twists, and plenty of Weiner's classic sass, Certain Girls is like literary cotton candy -- it's light, fun and sweet, yet sticks with you long after it's gone. Label it a beach season must. -- Gotham

Heartfelt and funny...A touching examination of both the comic and tragic moments that mark the mother-daughter relationship. -- Kirkus Reviews

Hilarious. Weiner offer her signature snappy observations and spot-on insights into human nature. -- Publishers Weekly

In this smart-mouthed sequel to Good in Bed (a chick-lit classic), heroine Cannie is older but thinner, and in a terrible tussle with her soon-to-be-bat mitzvahed daughter. -- Good Housekeeping

Jennifer Weiner's new book, Certain Girls, is a sequel to her huge best-seller, Good in Bed. For those of us who loved Cannie Shapiro, it's a chance to see her years later, married, a mother and coping with a new set of challenges. -- Cape Cod Times

Weiner displays her signature wry voice and sap-free knack for capturing heartfelt moments; an unexpected plot twist gives her story emotional heft. Fans should find Girls a worthy successor. -- People

Weiner is a talented and accomplished novelist, with real stylistic flair, excellent and sometimes laugh-out loud wit, and good insight into her characters...Cannie has retained her wit and her sharp takes on the world she lives in, but she has evolved. Weiner's voice is smart and edgy, and her male characters are sharply drawn. She writes about issues, such as the dynamics of family life, that are of interest to all humans. -- Philadelphia Inquirer

Weiner's follow-up to Good in Bed is, in a word, fantastic. You'll laugh, you'll cringe, you'll cry as you follow Cannie and her now nearly teenage daughter, Joy. Told through alternating first-person narratives, Weiner's tale gives mothers and daughters alike a treat to devour. -- Romantic Times

About The Author

Jennifer Weiner is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of eighteen books, including Good in Bed, That Summer, and an essay collection, Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing. A graduate of Princeton University and contributor to the New York Times Opinion section, Jennifer lives with her family in Philadelphia. Visit her online at JenniferWeiner.com.