Reviewer: Lori Graham
Title: Monkey Love
Author: Brenda Scott Royce
Publisher: New American Library
ISBN: 0-451-21754-3
Release Date: February 2006
Genre/Sub-genre: Contemporary Romantic Comedy
Year/Setting: Current/New York
Overall rating: 5.0
Sexual content rating: Subtle (Very)
Language (profanity) content rating: None
Brenda's Website:
www.brendascottroyce.com/index.html
Holly Heckerling hasn’t had what you would refer to as an easy life. Her mother when she was a child and her father couldn’t handle life afterwards. He left her to stay with her aunt briefly and then just never came back. While her aunt took care of her, she never really showered Holly with affection. Because of all of this Holly hasn’t ever really felt like she found her place in life and just keeps looking.
As Holly embarks on a life of her own, she continues that journey. She loves working with animals and got a college degree to work with primates. Unfortunately there isn’t much call for this outside of a zoo. So, she is making do with "Holly’s Hobbies" – a company of her own making. She will animal sit, run errands, do typing, cut hair, build things, and even does some stand up comedy.
In the midst of chaos though comes a ray of sunshine. A new individual is dropping off typing and the writing he is leaving is so beautiful she actually feels some sunshine in her life. To the outside world, her life is pretty funny. I mean who wouldn’t laugh at a woman whose other aunt moves in with her and sits around the house naked. Then if that weren’t bad enough she animal sits for a monkey who throws … well poop … at her when upset. Her cousin is in love with a woman by the name of Monica Broccoli (but guess what that name is wrong) and Monica wants a perm and her leg cast removed with Holly’s power tools.
Is it any surprise that she finally meets a man through chaos? Tom and his daughter were having a "coffee" break before school at the local Starbucks when their life got chaotic and Holly stepped in to help in her unusual method.
I have to say that I have heard and seen the term uproariously funny used before but had never read a book that so epitomized those words. I am sure that my overview above probably seemed a bit disjointed but the book is that way. I want to explain that though.
Brenda does a great job of creating the scenes, the plots and the characters and to read the book, it actually does flow quite well. Holly gets from point A to point B in the right fashion and you aren’t stumbling over yourself to wonder how she got from A to D with nothing in between. However, this "flow" reflects true life. I could so see myself in Holly’s life. No, I can’t imagine any of my aunts sitting around my house naked because of psoriasis nor can I see myself taking care of a monkey. However, there were scenes where she was planning a romantic dinner and had everything set out just so and had time to get herself ready when everything goes kaflooey and by the time dinner is ready, the house is trashed, she isn’t dressed, the cat ate the dinner and the man is put to work with clean up. In spite of her best efforts, Holly get "sucked" into the lives of the people she cares about which adds more chaos to her own.
One of my favorite parts of the book is the dynamic developing between Holly and the unknown writer leaving manuscripts for her to type. I won’t say any more about that part, however, and leave you to discover it.
Monkey Love is a funny, refreshing, look at life. It is real and has some depth you just begin to fully grasp and then the story ends. I found myself wishing for more at the end – not in the bad way of leaving you hanging but in just wanting to hang out with Holly awhile longer.
Lori
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