This is like the origin story for someone’s terrible boyfriend. George is not a monster, but he’s not particularly attentive or empathetic. He leaves the chores—and the breadwinning—to his girlfriend while he spends years half-heartedly working on his unpublished novel. While he thinks he has the potential for achieve his goals, he hasn’t actually gotten around to pursuing them yet. This book follows George from his childhood to his late thirties, watching those around him mature while he remains stagnant.

This is an odd little novel, but I enjoyed it. It sticks close to George’s perspective, so there’s some satisfying dramatic irony when he can’t see how maddening he’s being, but we, the reader, can. If anyone else has read the Adrian Mole books, think of this as their modern American cousin. There were some moments that were genuinely laugh-out-loud funny. I’m still not sure how I felt about the ending, but the more I sit with it, the more I’ve come to appreciate it.

I’ve been fortunate enough not to date a George, but I recognized some friends’ exes in his behaviour. Even more alarming, I recognized the ugliest parts of myself. While no one should be a lifelong, full-time George, we all have our moments of entitlement, hard-headedness and laziness. This book is a reminder to work hard and treat people well…because there’s a bit of George in each of us.

I really enjoyed reading this book! I thought it was fun and thoughtful. George will frustrate you, but he can also be funny. I enjoyed this one a lot!

This story was intriguing, with complex characters, but George's insufferable tendencies grew with each page. While I kept an open mind while reading, my dislike for the main character made it difficult to connect with the rest of the story. I loved Kate Greathead's writing and the ability to make an unlikable character so unlikable is skill on her end. He is extremely self-centered and occasionally funny in a self-deprecating way. I think there will be many people who can see aspects of themselves in George, allowing them to resonate and take away morals from this book.

Thank you, Henry Holt for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Book of George by Kate Greathead is a funny and interesting novel.
I thought the wrong some was super engaging and kept me turning the pages.
The characters are relatable, complex and interesting.
I really enjoyed this story Sam’s found it to be a great and intriguing story.

Thank You NetGalley and Henry Holt and Co. for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Told in vignettes of George’s life from age 12 to nearly 40, The Book of George is a thoughtful examination of the ennui of millennial masculinity. George is, to put it simply, insufferable. He relies on his charm and privilege to skate through life, enabled by the women around him. He’s depressed and accomplishing little but also exerting the minimum amount of effort, seeming to expect that things will be handed to him. He’s selfish, self-centered, occasionally funny, and sometimes cruel. Despite George being nearly completely unlikable, the prose is compelling and Kate Greathead is a gifted storyteller.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for providing me an advance copy of this book.

In 14 linked vignettes, Kate Greathead traces the “maturation” of George, a man who epitomizes the phrase “arrested development,” from the ages of 12 to 38. George’s misdeeds, such as neglecting to do homework in the tenth grade but being surprised when he is not accepted to a single Ivy, and his indisciveness in picking a college major because he believed that he was exceptional and never felt the need to hone a particular skill set or talent, could be initially dismissed as immature, egocentric or awkward (rather than callous).

But his actions as George ages, like his neglect of his father, whose love of expensive clothes caused an irreconcilable rupture in George’s parents’ marriage, cannot be so blithely ignored. George’s career as a waiter is cut short by a panic attack, his cushy internship at his godfather’s hedge fund could not quell his depression, nor could his off the books job as a dog walker for rich dog owners. His aspirations of becoming an author suffered from what his long-suffering, but perpetually sunny girlfriend, Jenny, referred to as his “George-problem.” She told him, “It might benefit your writing if you weren’t so wrapped up in yourself.” As Jenny gently critiques him, and as George reflects on Jenny’s criticisms, he becomes a character who we can’t help but root for. Thank you Henry Holt & Company and Net Galley for this wry view of George and, well, men.

I tried, really tried to get through this book. I kept asking what the point was. If it was to introduce a rather unlikeable character and go through his life in stages, then it is. Everything else about the book is not anything I wanted to know.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Oh, George. In The Book of George, we follow George’s life from adolescence through early adulthood. He’s a fascinating character—self-centered, cynical, kind, funny, gloomy, often stumbling through life, hesitant to take control. There's something deeply familiar about his journey.

Most of the book is told through the lens of his relationships with the women in his life—his mom, his sister, and his on-again, off-again girlfriend—who each challenge and enable him in different ways.

There were times when I was really rooting for George, charmed by his sweetness, and just hoping things would work out for him. But just as often, I found myself exasperated by his selfishness and lack of awareness. Despite his flaws, the writing was so smooth and compelling. I enjoyed the way the chapters were divided into different phases of his life, effectively marking the passage of time.

Surprisingly funny and ultimately hopeful, The Book of George left a lasting impression on me. I can’t wait to recommend it to my friends.

The Book of George tells the story of George’s life, from ages 12 to 38, via chapter vignettes. It’s a deep dive character study about a guy bumbling through life wondering when his life will happen and if he’ll ever grow up. The problem is George’s superior, self-important attitude. It’s a hinderance to his everyday life and limits his ability to truly connect to other people.

My takeaway from The Book of George is that, as a society, we are on the brink of creating a generation of Georges by constantly enabling bad behavior and praising mediocre achievements ... if we haven’t already. George, while quite unlikeable, is also weirdly relatable which is why I think The Book of George will resonate with a lot of people. It would also be perfect for book clubs as there is a lot to discuss and it’s a quick, easy read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Henry Hold and Company for the digital ARC of The Book of George.

Thank you @netgalley and @henryholtbooks for this advance copy.
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This is a tough book to rate because I appreciated the talent of the author, but I was so sick of George by the end. Which I think was her point. This is the coming of age story of George, a young millennial, from age 12 to his late 30s. In his younger years, I was sympathetic to George and rooting for him to get it together. But he soon grew tiresome. Is the author trying to generalize an entire generation of men? Or was George just based on a particularly loathsome ex boyfriend? I would recommend this novel for book clubs due to the abundance of discussion topics on privilege, parenting, accountability, millennials, failure to launch, nature vs nurture, etc. Excited to see what Greathead does next.

I liked the structure of this novel - following George throughout different points of his life. However, I found these characters unlikeable and not relatable. While the writing was well done, I did not find this an enjoyable reading experience.

Thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for a copy of this book.

This hilarious novel follows George, who coincidentally sounds like your ex that had commitment issues. Maybe read for closure?

I am usually a big fan of books that center around one main character and tell their life story in anecdotes. While The Book of George by Kate Greathead was that type of novel, I really struggled to get through it, and never really connected with the characters at all. I enjoyed the writing style, but the story of George's life just did not work well for me.

George is not a terribly likeable character, and while often that is not important to me, in this case, I found myself disliking him intensely for his self-centered obliviousness. His on-again, off-again girlfriend was only slightly more empathetic, and the overall effect for me was a bit of a slog.

I think readers of the millenial generation will respond more positively to the novel and to its characters. As a baby boomer, I found it difficult to relate.

Thank you to Netgalley and Henry Holt & Co. for the digital ARC of The Book of George by Kate Greathead. The opinions in this review are my own.

The Book of George by Kate Greathead was such an interesting read. The concept is very original and yet also very relatable in a way. I liked how well-written the characters were and it made for an entertaining read. I enjoyed my time reading it but I did feel like something was missing by the end. I just feel like we didn't get enough information. Overall, I still enjoyed my time reading it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this novel. I really enjoyed it and preordered the audiobook to listen to when it comes out as well.

The Book of George by Kate Greathead offers an interesting concept: George is a man who goes through life feeling out of place and misunderstood, navigating complicated relationships, work struggles, and his own inner turmoil. The book delves into his world, unpacking his interactions with others and his deeply flawed personality.

The characters are well-written, and Greathead’s style is engaging, but… I just couldn’t get past George himself. He’s so unlikeable that it became hard to root for him, and I kept waiting for some kind of explanation or backstory that would make his personality click—it never came. By the end, I found myself unsure of what the book was really trying to say. If you’re into character studies and don’t mind not loving the protagonist, this might be worth a read, but it left me wanting more.

Did I hate it? No. Did I like it? Also no. Sometimes you read a book and just ask yourself, "What was the point of this?" I suppose if the point was to make the reader frustrated and ready to be done at 30% then, mission accomplished. The writing is very competent, but I didn't like the plot and definitely didn't like the language. I didn't root for any of the characters, and didn't feel like I learned anything. There is nothing deep or entertaining about an unambitious man who constantly poisons his one good relationship, always sponges off of other people, and always acts like the victim.

The Book of George broke my month-long reading slump, where everything I picked up felt like a chore, and I am so grateful! This book is told in a series of vignettes following George from his teenage years through his late-30s.

I tend to love unlikeable characters, and George was truly as unlikeable as the book’s blurb would have you believe. Hot-tempered, self-aggrandizing, self-pitying (but, as Jenny noted, he did suffer from depression, which may have contributed to some of this). With such an unlikeable lead book shouldn’t have been so enjoyable to read, but I couldn’t put it down! The supporting characters were well-rounded and it was fun to see them popping up throughout George’s life.

As someone who was also a clinically-depressed millennial living in New York City throughout my twenties and early thirties, I’m ashamed to say that this book made me feel something akin to nostalgia.

The structure and premise of this book will no doubt draw comparisons to Dolly Alderton’s Good Material, and while the books are very different, if you enjoyed that one I would give The Book of George a try!

I really wanted to tell Jenny to go-just leave. George is a self centered selfish lazy man who needs to wake up and get moving. This tale that stretches over twenty years of their relationship might remind you of someone you know. It might also annoy you. More than once I thought I'd had enough but then I remembered Jenny, the long suffering woman who inexplicably sticks with George. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Over to others.

Genre: Contemporary Literary Fiction

George in Kate Greathead’s The Book of George is about fifteen or so years younger than I am. As a result many of the big events that frame his life framed mine as well making the novel quite relatable. How to summarize … George’s fairly ordinary life is set forth chronologically from 12 until his early 40s. We learn about the divorce of his parents, his college life - his friends and philosophy major, his series of jobs, and his on again off again relationship with Jenny. And more…
The novel is very much character driven. The reader learns just so very much about George. The relationship with Jenny which encompasses many eras of his life sort of hints at what George’s life in general is like. Jenny cares for George much more than he cares for her. She just sort of happens to him. They don’t choose to live together at first, but little by little, she is there. He allows all of this to happen while low key criticizing her much of the time. As they break up and come back together, Jenny puts up with so much, and continues to champion him and quite literally support him for years and years with little in return. When he does overcome his malaise and shows her some love - it always tugs at my heart strings just enough to have some empathy for him. He is like he is with Jenny with his friends and his family. At one point he spends a whole weekend playing Mario on game boy rather than cleaning his childhood room so his mother can move. When the entire place is finally packed he UNPACKS kitchen boxes to make some sentimental pancakes. He means well but seems incapable of reading a room so to speak. He floats through a variety of largely dead end jobs and seldom can pay for a place to live. But he knows he is a difficult person. He assesses himself fairly accurately. But even that self awareness doesn’t inspire him to do much on the way of changing himself. Greathead’s characterization is precise and detailed and accomplished.
What kept coming back to me as I read, was what if I had such an in-depth accounting of my thoughts and actions and choices of my chronological life. How would I fare compared to George? What is my ratio of optimism to cynicism? Of joy to sadness? Of steering my life to letting life happen to me? I even played around with the differences between being a millennial (George)versus being Gen X (me). I think reading this book after the upcoming Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner also featuring millennials just made me curious. I got a bit frustrated with both George and to a lesser extent Amy. Could it be our different generations and perhaps different approaches to life? Or, if I were truly honest (authentic? My review of the Authenticity Project is coming :-) would I sound quite like George? Now I am writing in circles. Kate Greathead’s got me thinking with her fascinating novel The Book of George, and I quite like it.