Mindy Kaling recommended The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. on a segment of the Today Show; she likened it to Bridget Jones Diary. Unfortunately, Nate is not nearly as charming as Bridget and his story comes across as a little douchey.
Nathaniel is the son of Jewish immigrants; he did well in high school, went on to study at Harvard and moved to Brooklyn, after graduation, to become a writer. Love Affairs is mostly about the year in Nate’s life leading up to his book’s publication. The book opens with him running into a girl he had a one night stand with, he hasn’t seen her since he paid for her abortion and it’s a little awkward; then he goes to a dinner party. The bulk of the novel chronicles Nate’s new relationship with Hannah, another writer, and his growing sense of apathy towards their relationship. The reader learns more about Nate’s previous relationships through various recollections throughout the novel; near the end of the novel Nate begins dating someone new.
Although The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P. was written by a woman, it came across as a “dude” book. The women are superfluous. Besides his platonic friend, Aurit, Nate treats the women in his life like crap throughout most of the novel. While he ends the book in a (committed) relationship he doesn’t seem to have grown throughout this year in his life.
I initially had 3 Stars but as I recalled details of the book for this review I dropped a star for misogyny.