Good In Bed

25 things Liz & Lisa want to know about Jennifer Weiner

jw-author-photo We are ecstatic that Jennifer Weiner has agreed to share her innermost secrets here at Chick Lit Is Not Dead.  Well, maybe not her innermost secrets, but we were thrilled to discover little nuggets about her. And it turns out, we share a love for the same television shows and all appreciate the word "douchebag"!  We love this woman! In fact, GOOD IN BED is one of Liz's all-time favorite books, and Lisa has read THE GUY NOT TAKEN more times than she can count.

Jennifer is the author of many fabulous Chick Lit novels including her much-anticipated new book, BEST FRIENDS FOREVER, available in just a couple weeks! We can tell from the title alone that we are going to LOVE it! Gee, we wonder why?

After her debut novel GOOD IN BED (2001); came IN HER SHOES (2002) which was turned into a major motion picture starring Cameron Diaz, Toni Collette and Shirley MacLaine; then LITTLE EARTHQUAKES (2004); GOODNIGHT NOBODY (2005); the short story collection THE GUY NOT TAKEN (2006); and CERTAIN GIRLS (2008), the sequel to GOOD IN BED. And because of all her awesomeness, there are more than 11 million copies of her books in print in 36 countries. Kind of makes us want to learn another language...

So give us a drum roll please...CHICK LIT IS NOT DEAD PRESENTS: 25 things Liz & Lisa want to know about Jennifer Weiner!

1.  Inside my purse, you'll discover: My glasses, cinnamon gum, a stray pacifier for the baby.

2.  My secret talent is: nothing I’d want to see in print!

3.  If stranded on an island, the five things I could not live without are: Prescription sunglasses, Blackberry, Carmex lip balm, my Kindle (yes, I know it’s going to kill publishing, but can’t live without it), my Kindle power cord and…wait, is there power on this island?

4.  On my nightstand you'll find: About a dozen books I’m either reading or re-reading; my Kindle, a framed picture of my older daughter (she’s six) from her first birthday.

5.  When I grew up, I wanted to be: A writer! How ‘bout that?

6.  My worst job: When I was sixteen, I worked at a really fancy (well, for suburban Connecticut it was really fancy) restaurant. My job was to walk through the tables with a wicker basket over my arm, offering diners fresh-baked biscuits and raspberry jam. I was the biscuit girl.

7.  My comfort food: Shortbread cookies, chocolate-chip cookies, linzer tarts, garlic-lemon roast chicken with mashed potatoes…and biscuits. Yes, I still love biscuits!

8.  The location where I write: Neighborhood coffee shops and cafes, my closet when I’m home

9.  Three songs on my IPOD's most played list: “You Found Me” by The Fray, “Wore Me Down” by Rachael Yamagata, the “Glee” version of “Don’t Stop Believin’”

10. If I was on the cover of US Weekly, my headline would read: “Jen’s Secret Heartache?” (If I were on the cover of Us Weekly, I can only assume it would be because someone confused me with Jennifer Aniston. In which case the headline could very well be “Jen Lets Herself Go.”)

11. The three books that make me think of my childhood:A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Little Women, Blubber

12. My favorite Chick Flick: “Working Girl.” Has Harrison Ford ever been hotter? I could watch it every day.

13. My favorite Chick Lit book: An oldie but a goodie: SHEILA LEVINE IS DEAD AND LIVING IN NEW YORK

14. My "must see" TV: How much time have you got? Lost, Grey’s, So You Think You Can Dance, American Idol, Top Chef, Project Runway, How I Met Your Mother and How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria

15. My Starbucks order: Calm tea in the winter, venti iced decaf with room for milk in the summer (and isn’t “Room for Milk” a great potential book title?)

16. My favorite curse word: Douchebag

17. My celebrity man crush: Alan Rickman. Shutup

18. My celebrity girl crush: Sarah Silverman

19. My writer crush: Tom Perrotta

20. My last meal before execution: Clearly, I would demand to be taken to an all-you-can-eat buffet…and then I’d just say, “Sorry, not done yet.” They’d never be able to kill me!

21. Three words to summarize my book: Great big heart

22. It took me _____  to write my book. Unspeakable quantities of dark chocolate and baked goods

23. My book's original title: It was always BFF!

24. Right now, I'm working on: Packing up the girls for our jaunt to Cape Cod

25. Chick Lit is alive & kicking because: women never get tired of reading about funny, familiar, relatable characters trying to make sense of their lives.

We can't wait to read BEST FRIENDS FOREVER, available on July 14th! Click here to pre-order your copy.  And to find out even more about the divine Jennifer Weiner, head on over to www.jenniferweiner.com.

xoxo,

Liz & Lisa

Top Ten All-Time Faves by Liz

Discussing all the reasons why I love chick lit has made me nostalgic for my favorite books.  So I've decided to list my top ten all-time favorites and would love to hear what is at the top of your reading list. Twilight disclaimer: Okay so it won't be on my top ten but I did like it!  It is beautifully written and engaging, but I wanted to highlight books that I've gone back and read two and three times just so I could visit the characters again. So don't tag me as a Twilight hater, I'm not. But I'm not gonna lie, Bella's damsel in distress act starting getting on my nerves in New Moon.

Liz's Top Ten All-Time Faves

1. Summer Sisters by Judy Blume

I'll admit that the only reason I had picked up this book was because of  my childhood loyalty to classics like Are You There God?  It's Me Margaret (They talked about her period! gasp!) and forbidden fare like Forever (oh, admit it, you know you all had a copy of it hidden under your bed in the 80's!)

However, Summer Sisters turned out to be a wonderful novel about the complex, lifelong friendship of two girls.  I have read it over ten times and still have my dog-eared copy on the bookshelf.  This is a must-read!

2. Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood and Little Altars Everywhere by Rebecca Wells

I love these two books and think that you should read Ya-Ya first and then Little Altars Everywhere second even though they were written in the opposite order. This is also a story about life-long friends set in the South.  I was so bummed when the movie came out, I thought it didn't do the book justice at all!

3. Something Borrowed and Something Blue by Emily Giffin

Lisa and I have talked about writing a book together for fifteen years, but it wasn't until we read these two books that we felt inspired to start.  What I love best about these books is that Something Borrowed is told in the voice of Rachel and then the story picks up again in something Blue in the voice of Darcy, Rachel's best friend.  Emily Giffin does a awesome job of making these women likeable even though they make bad decisions.

4. Good in Bed by Jennifer Weiner

From page one, I was in love.  I know that In Her Shoes gets a lot more attention because of the movie, but I believe this story about Cannie's journey to self-discovery is her finest.

5. Jemina J by Jane Green

Love, love, love this story about a women who sends a man a fake picture and then has to reinvent herself into the fictional person she's created when he wants to meet her.

6. Seeing Me Naked by Liza Palmer

I love Liza's ability to write sophisticated characters that we can all still relate to.  A great read for anyone that feels they are always trying to live up to other's expectations.

7. Me Vs. Me by Sarah Mlynowski

I adore this book about a women who can't decide which path to choose so she starts to live them both after her wish on a falling star comes true.  I have such a soft spot for novels that have a little magic going on!

8. A Most Uncommon Degree of Popularity by Kathleen Gilles Seidel

I just read this book for the first time a few weeks ago and LOVED it.  Once I started it, I literally didn't put it down until I finished.  A story about trading in your corporate life for the mommy track and the competitive insanity that can come along with it.

9. Straight up and Dirty: A Memoir by Stephanie Klein

Lisa loves memoirs and turned me on to this hilarious story about a woman's journey to find herself again after divorce.  Stephanie's brutal honesty about life is refreshing and makes this a must-read.

10.  Names My Sisters Call Me by Megan Crane

I love Megan's witty humor and complicated characters that are filled with depth and emotion!  Smart and Sassy chick lit.

So there you have it!  What are your favorites?  I need some suggestions on what to read next!