Genres
Collection
Publication
Vintage (2010), 432 pages
Description
Fiction. Literature. HTML:The bestselling author of Maine brings us a sparkling tale of friendship and a fascinating portrait of the first generation of women who have all the opportunities in the world, but no clear idea about what to choose. Assigned to the same dorm their first year at Smith College, Celia, Bree, Sally, and April couldn�??t have less in common. Celia, a lapsed Catholic, arrives with a bottle of vodka in her suitcase; beautiful Bree pines for the fiancé she left behind in Savannah; Sally, preppy and obsessively neat, is reeling from the loss of her mother; and April, a radical, redheaded feminist wearing a �??Riot: Don�??t Diet�?� T-shirt, wants a room transfer immediately. Written with radiant style and a wicked sense of humor, Commencement follows these unlikely friends through college and the years beyond, brilliantly capturing the complicated landscape facing youn… (more)
Media reviews
Sullivan’s gifts are substantial. By the end you’re rooting for her to let her storytelling talents roam out into less protected territory.
J. Courtney Sullivan’s “Commencement” is one of this year’s most inviting summer novels.
Even as several subplots take soapy turns, the author manages to find that sweet spot between Serious Literature and chick lit. Commencement is a beach book for smart women — and the girls they once were.
Readable, but dated and lackluster.
User reviews
LibraryThing member bearette24
This was a warm and intelligently written novel that really brought Smith College to life for me. The story focuses on four friends who meet at Smith and follows their lives after graduation: Celia, an aspiring writer; Bree, a Southerner whose sexuality takes an unexpected turn; Sally, who is
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wealthy but motherless; and April, a militant feminist (who does have a sense of humor). One subplot had a bit too much violence for me, but the quality of the writing and character development made up for it. Show Less
LibraryThing member lucy3107
This is good "beach reading," nothing more. The tagline on the back cover compares this book to Curtis Sittenfield's prep (but with college students), but Prep was much more engaging and interesting than this. The characters were stereotypical and their actions predictable. Part I is stronger than
However, the book is well-written and I would give the author another chance - hopefully with better material.
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part II, where the situation swings back and forth between horrifying and ridiculous. However, the book is well-written and I would give the author another chance - hopefully with better material.
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LibraryThing member Coyote99
What a disappointing book!!!! Sloppy writing, boring, wandering descriptions and inane dialog. Can't understand how this has gotten the praise except that the author is on the Editorial Board of the NY Times and must have benefited from insider consideration. She is very well connected and the
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Literary Feminists have rallied around. How sad that the descriptions of life at Smith give the impression that the students were only interested in sexual encounters and never attended a class. Show Less
LibraryThing member Greta626
I am very disappointed in this book. The author is not a good writer. The characters are caricatures (and annoying ones at that). The dialogues in this book are stuff that actual people would never say. Her plot... let's just say that it's fairly clear that Sullivan has no idea what she's talking
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about for much of the second half of the book. The main characters seem to float around in a work-free environment agonizing about love, relationships, and families with nary a worry about money or responsibilities. The one woman who actually has a career and cares about what she does is depicted as a sucker, a slave, and a fanatic. And the book ends on a stupid, unrealistic twist that is truly cringe-worthy. I bought this book expecting a delightful and well-written beach read. It was not that. Show Less
LibraryThing member ironicqueery
Commencement is a great book; think Sex and the City if the women had graduated from a Seven Sisters college, then add intellectual insight. The novel starts off with the standard "chick lit" feel to it - friends getting together for a wedding and remanences of college life. But as the plot
The book provides an insightful look at Feminism and how different women define it, whether they be more traditional to very radical. The four women are used to show the variety of perspectives and how people can still relate to one another even when varying beliefs are held. The book also speaks about class and how money affects the lives of each woman. There are also other common issues like love and growing older, but they are handled smartly.
J. Courtney Sullivan has written a wonderful book that packages a wide range of important issues into a novel that is entertaining and captivating to read. She obviously has put a lot of thought into the issues she finds important to write about. Hopefully this is the first of many brilliant novels to come from her.
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develops, the story becomes quite thought-provoking. The book provides an insightful look at Feminism and how different women define it, whether they be more traditional to very radical. The four women are used to show the variety of perspectives and how people can still relate to one another even when varying beliefs are held. The book also speaks about class and how money affects the lives of each woman. There are also other common issues like love and growing older, but they are handled smartly.
J. Courtney Sullivan has written a wonderful book that packages a wide range of important issues into a novel that is entertaining and captivating to read. She obviously has put a lot of thought into the issues she finds important to write about. Hopefully this is the first of many brilliant novels to come from her.
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LibraryThing member marient
Assigned to the same dorm their first year at Smith College, Celia, Bree, Sally and April couldn't have less in common. Together they experience the ecstatic highs and painful lows of early adulthood.
LibraryThing member aimless22
A wonderful debut novel about four friends who meet at Smith College. The bonds that form stay strong through their first years after college and we are led to believe that they will remain forever strong.
Feminism, lesbianism, family, death, loss, fights, make ups, marriage, motherhood - all
Wonderfully fleshed out characters keep the reader interested.
Feminism, lesbianism, family, death, loss, fights, make ups, marriage, motherhood - all
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squeezed into these four women's four years at Smith and the first four years after.Wonderfully fleshed out characters keep the reader interested.
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LibraryThing member BaileysAndBooks
Commencement is the story of four friends, April, Sally, Celia and Bree, who navigate their way through finding themselves as they start college (in this case, Smith, which also happens to be Ms. Sullivan’s alma mater) and discovering who they really are once they graduate.
I was going to write a
The story begins with a wedding, or at least the travels back to Smith College for Sally’s wedding to the sweet, loveable man that Sally’s three friends fear isn’t good enough for her. As we build to the wedding, we also travel to the past to see how their friendship grew over their four years as housemates.
Of course, there must be drama – and this book provides it. The night before the wedding tests their friendship and the rest of the novel explores the paths they take – with and away from each other.
I won’t say too much else, as I don’t want to be leading or spoil anything. I will say that I wasn’t thrilled with where some parts of this book went in the end. But overall because of the characters themselves, and the fun of watching them develop while they were in college, I walked away from this book happy I read it, and looking forward to what Sullivan may write next.
I was going to write a
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little description of each character, but as I think about them, I can’t think of just one phrase to sum up each of these women, they are so multi-dimensional, and that is what I think made this book such an enjoyable read for me. I found myself able to relate to each of the characters for some trait they held, but they also had something about them that was foreign to me that I wanted to read and know more. There was not one I said, “oh, she is my favorite” or one that I didn’t like at all. They all had their virtues, and they each certainly had their own personal flaws.The story begins with a wedding, or at least the travels back to Smith College for Sally’s wedding to the sweet, loveable man that Sally’s three friends fear isn’t good enough for her. As we build to the wedding, we also travel to the past to see how their friendship grew over their four years as housemates.
Of course, there must be drama – and this book provides it. The night before the wedding tests their friendship and the rest of the novel explores the paths they take – with and away from each other.
I won’t say too much else, as I don’t want to be leading or spoil anything. I will say that I wasn’t thrilled with where some parts of this book went in the end. But overall because of the characters themselves, and the fun of watching them develop while they were in college, I walked away from this book happy I read it, and looking forward to what Sullivan may write next.
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LibraryThing member stephaniechase
I am a little torn about this book... part of me wants to describe it as yet another book about self-absorbed twentysomething women of privilege (boring), describing a friendship between four women (boring), who find themselves pining for their college days (boring). And yet -- I could not put this
One of the characters in the book mentions that when John Updike writes about feelings, he gets a Pulitzer, and when a woman writes about feelings, she gets a pink cover and shelved in the chick-lit section. It is altogether too true, and yet something about this book and its setting at Smith College and its focus almost entirely on women holds me back from giving it five stars.
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book down. Each of the four women is wonderfully written; the women keep secrets and fight with each other, recognizing that close friendship needs work when apart; their lives, both the big events and the small disappointments and triumphs, are very real. I found it engrossing.One of the characters in the book mentions that when John Updike writes about feelings, he gets a Pulitzer, and when a woman writes about feelings, she gets a pink cover and shelved in the chick-lit section. It is altogether too true, and yet something about this book and its setting at Smith College and its focus almost entirely on women holds me back from giving it five stars.
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LibraryThing member PeskyLibrary
Four girls attend Smith College and become the best of friends. Their lives after college diverge, yet they still keep in contact. When April is abducted and presumed dead, the girls reexamine their relationships. This book will appeal to chick-lit fans and older girls who like the Traveling pants
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series. Fans of Sex in the City may also enjoy the story. - CKL Show Less
LibraryThing member yankeesfan1
I found this to be an enjoyable read. It has some predictable elements of chick lit, yet also a nice amount of feminist discussion. I liked the insight into the Smith culture, even if it was not totally realistic. The back and fourth between college stories and post college was a interesting. I
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found the characters likeable for their backstories and flaws, as well as their positives. Overall, a fun quick read. Show Less
LibraryThing member mustreet
I really enjoyed this book about four former floormates at Smith College, as they progressed through college and then beyond. It was fun to take a glimpse at college life at Smith and at times it seemed like more than just the usual chick-lit. I'm looking forward to seeing what sort of book this
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author chooses to write next. Show Less
LibraryThing member shazjhb
Excellent book. A bssic friendship book intertwined with college, sexual abuse, feminism and a lesbian love story. The issues of sexual abuse were frightening. This is USA in 21st Century. Makes you think.
LibraryThing member tculkin
If there was a way to give a negative rating, I would do it. This is a terrible book. It's seems written to a formula of cliches about young women at seven sisters colleges. It's almost as if Sullivan used a flowchart to ensure that all cliche bases were covered.
LibraryThing member ccayne
Enjoyable read about 4 women from various backgrounds who attended Smith, which become an emblematic experience for them.
LibraryThing member RHLibrary
Marie Kent:
What do you get when you take four females with different backgrounds, personalities, and experiences and center a novel around every giggle, every boy, every argument, and every hug? Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants? Sex and the City? Not quite…
Commencement, the debut novel by J.
"…I certainly didn’t set out to write a book about feminism, per se. I wanted to tell a story about the first generation of American women to have all the choices in the world laid out before them; a gift that is wholly incredible and a little bit terrifying. I was about the same age as the women in the book while I was writing it, and I watched my girlfriends struggling with choices: Who to love. How to work. Where to begin."
These things combined with the candor and honesty with which Commencement addresses the complexities of female friendship made this book not just a fun read for this member of the book’s target demographic — I felt a lot less guilty about reading it! Enjoyable and thought provoking, this will surely spark discussion among your female patrons.
What do you get when you take four females with different backgrounds, personalities, and experiences and center a novel around every giggle, every boy, every argument, and every hug? Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants? Sex and the City? Not quite…
Commencement, the debut novel by J.
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Courtney Sullivan, follows Sally, Bree, April and Celia as they forge an intense bond with one another in the halls of a Smith College dormotory. Spanning from their first year at this all-girl university to the geographically and demographically different paths they take after graduation, this book is more than just “chick-lit”. While the author gives her girls “female” issues to tackle such as men, dating, marriage, careers, and babies, she also addresses family issues, feminism, identity struggles, and even sex crimes making this ”gaggle of girls” read quite refreshing. On her website (which, by the way, features fun goodies like videos of Smith convocations from 1940 and 2008) Sullivan elaborates on the feminist undertones that exist within the novel:"…I certainly didn’t set out to write a book about feminism, per se. I wanted to tell a story about the first generation of American women to have all the choices in the world laid out before them; a gift that is wholly incredible and a little bit terrifying. I was about the same age as the women in the book while I was writing it, and I watched my girlfriends struggling with choices: Who to love. How to work. Where to begin."
These things combined with the candor and honesty with which Commencement addresses the complexities of female friendship made this book not just a fun read for this member of the book’s target demographic — I felt a lot less guilty about reading it! Enjoyable and thought provoking, this will surely spark discussion among your female patrons.
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LibraryThing member RivkaBelle
Oh. Wow. I went into this book expecting a typical chick-lit book about four friends who went through college together, yadda yadda yadda ... I love those stories, so I was looking forward to it. What I read was so much more. So much. It *is* the story of four (very different, of course!) girls who
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meet their freshman orientation and become close friends through college and beyond. But it's also the story of four lives interwoven and connected in ways that defy distance, argument, unknowing ... Some pretty serious issues are dealt with in the girls' lives and discussions -- frankly, but sensitively. I was thoughtful through much of the reading. I also greatly appreciate the mechanics of the storytelling: each of the four girls is allowed to speak. Sometimes their stories overlap, but because you're seeing it from a different perspective which gives dimensionality to the novel. In short, this was an amazing reading experience - and I kinda hope there's more to come! Show Less
LibraryThing member LisaMa321
This novel starts off strong. The story begins by telling both the current and past stories of the main characters. While somewhat stereotypical, each character is a true archetype of the Smith College women. After a strong first half, the novel finishes with a somewhat disjointed second half. Each
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character experiences a major life event, but they are unoriginal, and lose the originality that the first half develops. The ending is also somewhat unfulfilling. Show Less
LibraryThing member alanna1122
I probably had unfairly high expectations for this book. I really enjoy reading about friendships and college and there just aren't that many smart books written about that subject. The icing on my expectations cake was that it also took place almost exactly when I was in college - so the women in
Well. Not so yay.
There were somethings I liked about this book - the characters were okay - sometimes I got them muddled because in some ways they weren't so different. Celia had the least drama going on in her life and I had to keep reminding me about what her back story. It didn't help that she was supposed to be from a big Boston Irish family and her name was Celia. Personally - being from the Boston area and of Irish decent - I don't know a heck of a lot of Celia's and so I kept forgetting who she was.
It is hard having 4 main characters. It is hard making them different enough to be interesting to the reader but also making them seem like they have enough in common that it makes sense that they are friends. I didn't really understand their friendship. April in particular seemed like such an unlikely member of the quartet.
April was my least favorite character in the novel. I really didn't like her and felt the author should have done a lot more footwork investing me in her since she turns out to be such a pivotal character. There was not much given to us that made her likable. I also feel like someone so educated wouldn't be so incredibly stupid.
Okay. So I felt this book was very predictable - right to the very last page. But it was an easy read - and if all she says about the traditions of Smith are true - well heck - that was a hoot and worth the read.
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the book were like my contemporaries! YAY!Well. Not so yay.
There were somethings I liked about this book - the characters were okay - sometimes I got them muddled because in some ways they weren't so different. Celia had the least drama going on in her life and I had to keep reminding me about what her back story. It didn't help that she was supposed to be from a big Boston Irish family and her name was Celia. Personally - being from the Boston area and of Irish decent - I don't know a heck of a lot of Celia's and so I kept forgetting who she was.
It is hard having 4 main characters. It is hard making them different enough to be interesting to the reader but also making them seem like they have enough in common that it makes sense that they are friends. I didn't really understand their friendship. April in particular seemed like such an unlikely member of the quartet.
April was my least favorite character in the novel. I really didn't like her and felt the author should have done a lot more footwork investing me in her since she turns out to be such a pivotal character. There was not much given to us that made her likable. I also feel like someone so educated wouldn't be so incredibly stupid.
Okay. So I felt this book was very predictable - right to the very last page. But it was an easy read - and if all she says about the traditions of Smith are true - well heck - that was a hoot and worth the read.
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LibraryThing member TerriBooks
Four bright young women who go to Smith and graduate Phi Beta Kappa -- you'd think they'd be more mature as they face life. Maybe this is supposed to be a reflection of the extended adolescence we see these days. Covering the time from when these young women start college, through their
I don't know anything about Smith College. If this book is at all realistic, don't send your daughters there!
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mid-twenties, all four of them seem to just drift through relationships, careers, family life. I wanted to like them, but I mostly wanted to just shake them and say "What are you thinking?" Must be the mother in me.I don't know anything about Smith College. If this book is at all realistic, don't send your daughters there!
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LibraryThing member etxgardener
I've read this book before, or rather, several like it - the coming of age of four college roommates and what happens to them as they leave school and enter the real world. This one, however, is set in more contemporary times and originates at that bastion of political correct lesbianism - Smith.
I'm sure this book reflects college life as it is today in the rarified atmosphere of one of the old Seven Sisters women colleges, but as a reader, I found it hard to relate to, it being so far from my own college experience so many years ago.
Do young women play so casually with lesbianism? Would any woman in her right mind agree to the stunt that April is talked into in the name of protecting young girls from sexual trafficking? While well-written, this book just isn't ultimately believable.
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We meet the main characters as they start their Freshman year: Celia, a lapsed Catholic, but perhaps, the most normal of all of the girls; Bree, a lovely southern belle who arrives with an engagement ring on her finger, but soon falls into a Lesbian affair; Sally, who has just lost her mother and cannot deal with her loss; and April, a radical feminist who wants to take on all those who would malign women.I'm sure this book reflects college life as it is today in the rarified atmosphere of one of the old Seven Sisters women colleges, but as a reader, I found it hard to relate to, it being so far from my own college experience so many years ago.
Do young women play so casually with lesbianism? Would any woman in her right mind agree to the stunt that April is talked into in the name of protecting young girls from sexual trafficking? While well-written, this book just isn't ultimately believable.
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LibraryThing member courtb
Good story about women and their bonds.
LibraryThing member jennzee
Commencement is the story of four women who are very different, but who all become friends during their freshman year at Smith Collge, and all girl school in the Northeastern US. The story jumps between the present time, at which Sally is getting married, and their time at Smith, and it told in
Without spoiling much, I will say that this book goes somewhere I didn't expect at all, but which I appreciated so so so much. This is how "chick lit" should be written-- it's good, quality fiction with main characters that are women. I identified with each character in a different way, I've already reread it twice, and it's the first book I reccomend to my femaie friends right now. My only complaint is that since it was the author's first book, she doesn't have anything else out yet!
You will not regret reading it.
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rotating sections from each woman's perspective. It starts out feeling like a pretty cookie cutter chick lit book, with Celia waking up after a one night stand and realizing she's late to catch the bus to Sally's wedding...but somehow, completely organically, it turns into something much greater through the course of the story. It becomes a treatise on how being friends with people who are different from you and believe differently can be difficult, how those relationships only become more difficult to maintain with time and distance, and how vital they can be to hold on to. It also morphs into a story about Bree's difficulty comming to terms with parts of herself her family cannot accept, Sally working through her mother's death, both in the immediate aftermath and the long term painful moments, such as not having her mom at her wedding, Celia dealing with a desire for something more in her life, an April working through how she can reconcile her radical beliefs and desires to change the world with reality and personal safety....Without spoiling much, I will say that this book goes somewhere I didn't expect at all, but which I appreciated so so so much. This is how "chick lit" should be written-- it's good, quality fiction with main characters that are women. I identified with each character in a different way, I've already reread it twice, and it's the first book I reccomend to my femaie friends right now. My only complaint is that since it was the author's first book, she doesn't have anything else out yet!
You will not regret reading it.
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LibraryThing member bachaney
Commencement tells the story of four young women--Bree, Celia, April and Sally--who meet in their freshman dorm at Smith College. The four women are from different backgrounds and have different dreams, but their experience at Smith draws them together into what they believe will be a life long
Commencement was the second novel that I have read by J. Courtney Sullivan (I read her novel Maine first) and I have to say, I'm glad I read Maine first, because after Commencement, I'm not sure I would have given her a second chance. There wasn't anything horrible about the novel, but the first half of it really dragged for me and it took me a very long time to get interested in the story. And then once the story got interesting, it seemed to start taking turns that got progressively less believable. The novel is well written, but maybe I'm not familiar enough with the culture and lifestyle of Smith College and its graduates to fully appreciate its charms.
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friendship. After graduation, the four women move in their separate ways, vowing to stay close. Soon the different paths of their lives will challenge their friendship, and one critical choice will threaten to tear them all apart.Commencement was the second novel that I have read by J. Courtney Sullivan (I read her novel Maine first) and I have to say, I'm glad I read Maine first, because after Commencement, I'm not sure I would have given her a second chance. There wasn't anything horrible about the novel, but the first half of it really dragged for me and it took me a very long time to get interested in the story. And then once the story got interesting, it seemed to start taking turns that got progressively less believable. The novel is well written, but maybe I'm not familiar enough with the culture and lifestyle of Smith College and its graduates to fully appreciate its charms.
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LibraryThing member nomadreader
The basics: Commencement tells the story of four friends, Celia, Sally, Bree and April, who met at Smith College and remained best friends as life took them in different directions after graduation. The four meet again at Smith for Sally's wedding and the novel unfolds in the present, as well as
My thoughts: There's a feeling I get sometimes when I read that the writer gets me. I don't only read to not feel alone in this world, but I celebrate when I come across a book that leaves me internally shouting, "yes!" in reaction to a character or a passage of writing. I lost count of how many times I felt affirmed by both her writing and her characters. J. Courtney Sullivan is one of those writers I celebrate, and although Commencement is not a perfect novel, it was an utterly delightful reading experience from its first pages:
"It was a habit of hers, a remnant of a time when she actually believed in God and would say a Hail Mary whenever she was in trouble. Celia realized now that what she had once thought of as prayers were in fact just wishes. She didn't expect the Virgin to actually do anything--even if she did exist, she probably wouldn't be in the business of controlling buses running express from Manhattan to Northampton, Mass. All the same, the familiar words calmed Celia down. She tried to use them sparingly so as not to offend the Mother of God, a woman she didn't believe in, but even so."
Celia is the first to narrate, and I initially connected more with her, often for characterizations like this one: "Celia wanted to know it immediately. Her mother always said she had a novelist's fascination with other people's tragic tales." Although the novel is ultimately an ensemble, Celia seems to be the main character throughout.
The novel is filled with sharp observations that are sometimes funny and almost always wise. While I enjoyed the tales of their college years immensely (I love college so much I work at one), I was moved by their lives after college, when the women remained the same age but found themselves at different points in their lives.
Favorite passage: "Back then, they had expanses of time in which to memorize one another's routines and favorite songs and worst heartaches and greatest days. It felt something like being in love, but without the weight of having to choose just one heart to hold on to, and without the fear of ever losing it."
The verdict: While some parts of the story fell a little flat for me, Commencement is still a novel I utterly adored. J. Courtney Sullivan infuses social justice and feminism beautifully to enhance the overarching theme of friendship. Sullivan wrote fully realized characters, and I loved witnessing their good times and bad times. She's clearly a writer to watch.
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through flashbacks of their time at Smith.My thoughts: There's a feeling I get sometimes when I read that the writer gets me. I don't only read to not feel alone in this world, but I celebrate when I come across a book that leaves me internally shouting, "yes!" in reaction to a character or a passage of writing. I lost count of how many times I felt affirmed by both her writing and her characters. J. Courtney Sullivan is one of those writers I celebrate, and although Commencement is not a perfect novel, it was an utterly delightful reading experience from its first pages:
"It was a habit of hers, a remnant of a time when she actually believed in God and would say a Hail Mary whenever she was in trouble. Celia realized now that what she had once thought of as prayers were in fact just wishes. She didn't expect the Virgin to actually do anything--even if she did exist, she probably wouldn't be in the business of controlling buses running express from Manhattan to Northampton, Mass. All the same, the familiar words calmed Celia down. She tried to use them sparingly so as not to offend the Mother of God, a woman she didn't believe in, but even so."
Celia is the first to narrate, and I initially connected more with her, often for characterizations like this one: "Celia wanted to know it immediately. Her mother always said she had a novelist's fascination with other people's tragic tales." Although the novel is ultimately an ensemble, Celia seems to be the main character throughout.
The novel is filled with sharp observations that are sometimes funny and almost always wise. While I enjoyed the tales of their college years immensely (I love college so much I work at one), I was moved by their lives after college, when the women remained the same age but found themselves at different points in their lives.
Favorite passage: "Back then, they had expanses of time in which to memorize one another's routines and favorite songs and worst heartaches and greatest days. It felt something like being in love, but without the weight of having to choose just one heart to hold on to, and without the fear of ever losing it."
The verdict: While some parts of the story fell a little flat for me, Commencement is still a novel I utterly adored. J. Courtney Sullivan infuses social justice and feminism beautifully to enhance the overarching theme of friendship. Sullivan wrote fully realized characters, and I loved witnessing their good times and bad times. She's clearly a writer to watch.
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Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2009-06-16
Physical description
432 p.; 8 inches
DDC/MDS
| 813.6 |
ISBN
0307454967 / 9780307454966
Similar in this library
Pages
432