The Big Love by Sarah Dunn

The Big Love is Sarah Dunn's first novel, and by most counts a good debut. It's a chic lit book, a story about love and relationships. More specifically, it's a story of one woman's mission to overanalyze both. As one review I read mentioned, the book has a witty, Sex & the City vibe, treating humiliating situations with humor and flair, all the while delving into the phsychology of modern dating.

While at times I found Dunn's main character, Alison, a bit shallow and self-absorbed, I was also intrigued by the character because of her upbringing. Through Alison, Dunn introduces into the discussion of love an aspect of character that most chic lit writers avoid at all costs - religious upbringing. Alison was brought up as a conservative Protestant and, though she no longer practices the religion of her youth, still finds that it colors most of her attitudes and decisions regarding the opposite sex. Having experienced a similar upbringing, I can certainly relate, and I found it refreshing to have romance discussed in such a completely open way. I got the impression that Dunn used Alison as a conduit to express many of her own attitudes on love and religious upbringing (although I doubt Dunn, or anyone, could be as obsessively neurotic about the issue as the character Alison seems to be).

I think for most people it's true that religious upbringing informs the way we view all of our relationships, particularly romantic ones. Dunn not only acknowledges this, she dives strainght into the analysis of it. Of course, the book is about more than religion and romance. At its heart, it's a novel about finding love.

The novel begins with Alison's steady boyfriend of 4 years leaving her for another woman. What follows is Alison's search for love and happiness, when everything she thought she wanted disappears. In dealing with this massive blow to both her pride and her happily-ever-after future, Alison discusses, in brutally honest fashion, her attitudes and herself, which makes for entertaining reading, particularly if you can relate to her. At one point in the novel, she admits that "I do suffer from an affliction in which I believe that all of my male friends are secretly in love with me." Who among us women has ever had that thought, at one point or another? And who of us has ever been brave enough to admit it?

Dunn's approach to the age-old trope of falling in love is a modern breath of fresh air. I found a few of the plot points a bit weak, but overall The Big Love is a mindless, entertaining read, with some fresh twists thrown into the chic lit genre. Enjyable for a lazy Saturday afternoon.

My Rating: 3 stars

Re-readability Rating: 1 star