The Secret Lives of Dresses, by Erin McKean

Dora is living life without any direction, majoring in the extremely general "liberal arts" and not really finding much inspiration in school or her work in a coffee shop. When her grandmother who raised her suffers a stroke, Dora runs home to be by her side, leaving behind school, work, and her flirty boss who she has a crush on. At home Dora takes over the running of her grandmother's vintage clothing store and discovers stories her grandmother would give to customers about the dresses they were buying. During this tragic time Dora learns new things about herself, her grandmother, and her long dead parents that she never knew before. Throughout everything Dora is faced with the choice of her lifetime: leave school and run her grandmother's shop (and spend time with the cute contractor) or go back to school (and her crush) and get her degree.

Overall thoughts:
When I first heard the plot of the book I was excited to read it. How could I not love a book about vintage dresses? The answer: very easily. Although I loved the story, the prose was absolutely horrible in my opinion. Yes, it told the story, but the sweetness of the story could not overwhelm the bad writing. There was too much detail in the story and though detail can be good-it bored me to death. Extra detail must either be useful information that comes into place later, words to make the story flow, or entertaining. The details here were none of the above. It would be like telling the story of Little Red Riding Hood and describing the exact path she took through the forest complete with directions and tree species. Some of these extra details were negligible and easily ignored but what really bothered me were the tangents the author would go on that would last pages and pages. I agree that the background story is important, but sometimes it would be in the middle of a scene and by the time we were back in the present I had totally forgotten what was going on. (The tangents I'm referring to are not the secret lives.) The reason why I gave this book such a high rating was because I did love the story itself, outside of the words.

Characters:
I couldn't even find one character that I liked. Every single person was completely one-sided. Dora was unsure, Gary was flirty and self-centered, Dora's aunt and cousin were vapid, Maux was outgoing and slightly nuts in a cute way, Mimi was the perfect grandmother, and Con was the perfect man. Every single person had only one side to them, even though the story did provide space for them to extend their personalities. There were times of happiness and sadness, but each character was exactly the same in every situation.

Narration:
When the story is being told from the first-person, it should not feel like the third person. Elements of personality should shine through and taint the rest of the story. However, because Dora has no personality and no opinions other than "vintage dresses rock!" it did not come across as first-person. Also-in a book about vintage dresses I expect some salivating descriptions, but was disappointed by how boring they were. And now I will finish this review because I have a sudden craving for Modcloth.

2.6 stars. The story would make an amazing movie but the book just didn't cut it for me.


Dora has always taken the path of least resistance. She went to the college that offered her a scholarship, is majoring in "vagueness studies," and wears whatever shows the least dirt. She falls into a job at the college coffee shop, and a crush on her flirty boss, Gary.

Just when she's about to test Gary's feelings, Mimi, the grandmother who raised her, suffers a stroke. Dora rushes back home to Forsyth, NC, and finds herself running her grandmother's vintage clothing store. The store has always been a fixture in Dora's life; though she grew up more of a jeans-and-sweatshirt kind of girl, before she even knew how to write, Mimi taught her that a vintage 1920s dress could lift a woman's spirit.

While working there, Dora befriends Mimi's adorable contractor, Conrad. Is he after Dora, or is working from a different blueprint? And why did Mimi start writing down--and giving away--stories of the dresses in her shop?

When Mimi dies, Dora can't get out of town fast enough and cedes control of the store to her money-hungry aunt who wants to turn it into a t-shirt shop for tourists. But ultimately, she returns to Forsyth, willing to battle whatever may stand in the way of her staying there. Dora can trade her boring clothes for vintage glamour, but can she trade her boring life for one she actually wants?