Cause Celeb surprised me in the depth of its message. I thought it was going to be a light piece of fluff, something to amuse me, send me off into sleep with nothing too stressful to ponder. And indeed, its humorous passages often left me a bit cold. Otherwise, the description and portrayal of dysfunctional relationships, as one couple and also in society in general, was very vivid and moving.
The novel, written by Helen Fielding (author of Bridget Jones' Diary), is about Rosie Richardsons crusade to save the swelling population at a refugee camp in the African desert from starvation. Rosie left London after the dissolution of a bad relationship. Faced with a famine caused by locusts, she approaches the problem with missionary zeal. Using her connections in the London celebrity world, she plans a fund-raiser. The unexpected and expected twists of the plot line as character development unfolded were more interesting to me than the attempts at humor. But altogether it was a worthwhile read, in its revelations and insights on the subjects of fame and altruism, and especially its portrayal of a (needy) girl becoming a (strong) woman.
Posted by leya at February 6, 2005 07:33 PM