Book Review: Jemima J by Jane Green

By Amanda Linsmeier

My absolute favorite Jane Green book, at least so far, is the sassy and surprising Jemima J (Broadway, 2001) Jemima Jones, a British reporter, is one hundred pounds overweight. She also happens to be very smart and very funny and knows that she could also be very pretty, if she just lost the weight. She can’t help but feel totally out of her league when it comes to Ben, her good-looking and charming colleague. Jemima resigns herself to just being his supportive friend because how could she possibly have more? When she takes an internet class through work, Jemima takes a shot at the world wide web for the first time. With her friend Geraldine and Brad at her side, she wanders into a chat room where she eventually meets Brad, from Santa Monica. Brad owns a gym, he’s sexy and in incredible shape. At the urging of Geraldine, Jemima tells Brad her name is JJ and that she’s very athletic. To prove her point, Geraldine helps Jemima Photoshop a picture of herself so that she looks thin and beautiful. When Brad responds enthusiastically and demands that they meet, Jemima has to conquer her fears and take giant leaps forward to finally lose the weight.

Jemima J is a fast-paced and incredible novel about love, addiction and attraction. When Jemima and Brad finally meet, he really is everything she thought he would be: Perfect. There’s just one problem: Jemima senses that something isn’t quite right and when she discovers the truth, it will turn the tables on everything she thought her life could be. I adored this book and know I’ll read it over and over again. It is refreshing reading about a heroine who struggles so much with loving herself. Overcoming her food addiction is just one of the problems Jemima has to overcome. And perhaps it isn’t the most realistic novel I’ve ever read, but I still loved it. It is the quintessential happy ending where you know our heroine will get everything she ever wanted and that she really does deserve it.