Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham - Review

Someday, Someday, Maybe

By: Lauren Graham

Published: April 30th 2013 by Ballantine Books

352 pages

Genre: Adult Fiction

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

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Goodreads description--From Lauren Graham, the beloved star of Gilmore Girls and Parenthood, comes a witty, charming, and hilariously relatable debut novel about a struggling young actress trying to get ahead―and keep it together―in New York City.

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. Her roommates―her best friend Jane, and Dan, an aspiring sci-fi writer―are supportive, yet Franny knows a two-person fan club doesn’t exactly count as success. Everyone tells her she needs a backup plan, and though she can almost picture moving back home and settling down with her perfectly nice ex-boyfriend, she’s not ready to give up on her goal of having a career like her idols Diane Keaton and Meryl Streep. Not just yet. But while she dreams of filling their shoes, in the meantime, she’d happily settle for a speaking part in almost anything—and finding a hair product combination that works.

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 just might get what she came for.

Someday, Someday, Maybe is a story about hopes and dreams, being young in a city, and wanting something deeply, madly, desperately. It’s about finding love, finding yourself, and perhaps most difficult of all in New York City, finding an acting job.

I requested Someday, Someday, Maybe because I really love Lauren Graham in Gilmore Girls and in Parenthood. And really I wanted to be a part of her new venture into writing. I think it's awesome that Lauren Graham's character on Parenthood just started tinkering with writing as well. I don't know if they went in that direction because of her real life or if that was planned out all along. Either way, really neat. I also wonder how much of Lauren Graham's life is molded into Franny and her life. "They" say it's easiest to write what you know, right? Anyway...just curious.

Speaking of Franny, she was an easily relate-able character. Franny begins the book with some super self-esteem issues. And she's super analytical, which I love because that's pretty much how I am. Franny's constantly questioning herself, her decisions, her talent, her appearance. Pretty much any aspect of herself that can be questioned is. More than anything Franny wants to be validated. She wants to know that she's not fooling herself into thinking that she can make a career out of acting. And I don't think anyone can blame Franny for having the thoughts that she has. She's quirky, sarcastic, and a bit clumsy. She reminds me of exactly the type of character that Lauren Graham portrays in her own acting roles.

I prefer female lead characters that I read about to be a bit stronger emotionally than Franny initially is. Yet the entire book is about the character growth that Franny experiences, so that makes all of the insecurities not only real but extremely worth it and valuable to read about. Franny doesn't stay in this place of low self-esteem and criticism. She learns to love herself for who she is...quirks and all.

Nothing in the story line was particularly surprising or unpredictable, but I enjoyed the story just the same. I don't read too many stories about aspiring actresses so it was just different enough to keep my interest. I definitely enjoyed this look into what a competitive world Franny desires to be in and how difficult just getting a start in it can be. Something I'd never thought about before was how frantic actors and actresses are to become established, yet taking just any and every job that comes their way could be the very thing that brings their careers to a screeching halt. You just never really know.

I enjoyed this debut novel by Lauren Graham even more than I expected to. While I was initially excited to experience this book, I also wasn't overly thrilled about the concept. Someday, Someday, Maybe proved to be more than I expected and would definitely recommend it to others for a light read about a character willing to grow and open to learning. Someday, Someday, Maybe gets a well-deserved 3.5 stars from me. Have you read Someday, Someday, Maybe? What did you think? Let me know!