someday, someday, maybe

someday, someday, maybe
lauren graham
fiction/contemporary/romance
ballantine books
published 2013

It's January 1995, and Franny Banks has just six months left of the three-year deadline she set for herself when she came to New York, dreaming of Broadway and doing "important" work.  But all she has to show for her efforts so far is a part in an ad for ugly Christmas sweaters, and a gig waiting tables at a comedy club.  Everything is riding on the upcoming showcase for her acting class, where she'll finally have a chance to perform for people who could actually hire her.  And she can't let herself be distracted by James Franklin, a notorious flirt and the most successful actor in her class, even though he's suddenly started paying attention.  Meanwhile, her bank account is rapidly dwindling, her father wants her to come home, and her agent doesn't return her calls.  But for some reason, she keeps believing that she might get what she came for.

I can't say that I'm a big Lauren Graham fan, but I did like her on Parenthood so when I heard she had written a book I thought I would pick it up.  I imagined her quirkiness would work well for a writer.  Then I remembered she's not really Sarah Braverman in real life.

The story is nothing new and the most interesting thing is that Franny complains about the exact plot of this book after she and her roommate go see a movie together.  There is nothing unpredictable about this book and nothing is really resolved in the end.  It felt like we just ended maybe 2 feet from where we began.

The characters were vague and boring.  All I can picture in my head of Franny is that she is brunette, has slightly uncontrollable hair (of course - don't all wannabe quirky actresses have crazy hair?) and is shorter than her roommate Dan.  I know that Dan is tall.  I cannot even remember if she really describes what James Franklin looks like because all I ever pictured from the beginning was James Franco.

I wasn't terribly disappointed.  I wanted to keep reading and find out what happened to Franny, but I felt myself continually disappointed in her.  She never did anything I was impressed with or felt a kinship with.  She just wasn't my people, I guess.