This is probably one for the girls…I can’t imagine there are many male Chick Lit readers out there – it’s a genre written by women for women. So, do we love it, do we hate it, or do we love to hate it?
There is no doubt it is very popular. Why? Well, it’s an effortless read, and it’s easy to identify with the main female lead; she’s like a best friend. She’s got man problems, she’s probably on a diet, she probably hates her legs, her bum or her hair, she probably lives in a bedsit or small flat, anguishes over the zit that appears just before a hot date, she’s probably got an annoying cat whom she adores, and you like her because she’s not quite perfect. She’s actually quite normal.
The stories are predictable – and invariably, they have an HEA ending. The female lead is always attractive (she may have a cute little dimple or a mole or quirky eyebrow), and the male is inevitably hunkilicious. More often than not, our protagonists hate each other to start with, of course they do – but women (both the character and the reader) love the thrill of the chase. Our main chick may be a little ditzy, but is often independent, feisty, stubborn, and quite possibly marriage-obsessed. Rarely do we dislike her, and we are rooting for her all the way till she gets her fella.
Chick lit is usually humorous – sometimes mildly, sometimes side-splittingly, and the romantic elements doesn’t usually go beyond the point our touch-and-go couple electrify each other with their touch and hit the sheets – chick-lit novels aren’t sex-filled “bonkbusters”.
Some women don’t like to admit to their fondness for Chick Lit – it’s their guilty pleasure – in case reading “fluff” might lead them to not be taken seriously as a reader. Just because the content isn’t deep and meaningful, heady stuff doesn’t necessarily mean it’s badly written, however. As with all genres, there’s good and there’s bad. I read all genres, but I’m quite happy to punctuate my reading with the odd Chick Lit. It’s a satisfying little snack in between main meals. It’s just the ticket when you’re feeling unwell and sorry for yourself, and your brain is a thick mush – it’s uplifting, feelgood, escapist, and cheers you up without taxing the grey matter.
Chick Lit’s been around a good while – think Jane Austen! Remember Pride and Prejudice (Elizabeth Bennet) and Emma? Though bound by the constraints of the time in which they lived, when there was a dependence on marriage to achieve standing and security, they were both strong, gritty women who stoically resisted the advances of Mr Darcy and Mr Knightley. Of course, we all know how it all ended for them both.
It’s a timeless recipe which will go on, reshaped and reformed to mirror the changes in society and will continue to delight Chick Lit’s loyal following for a long time.
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Cathy Speight is an accomplished book reviewer and Chief Consulting Reviewer at Indies Unlimited. For more information, please see the IU Bio page and her blog.
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Cathy,
Well-said. I hear women are 60% of the book-reading audience. Not a bad thing.
Your comparison reminds me of Neutrogena shampoo's marketing strategy; be the shampoo you use between shampoos to get rid of the build-up in your hair. Good way to build market-share while doling out entertainment and happiness. Smart.
Cheers
60% (or 80%)? Does that mean women are more literate than men?
Thanks, Cathy! "Chick Lit" is one of my favorite guilty pleasures. Many in the publishing world, though, hate the term, preferring "humorous women's fiction.' Also, it amuses me when, at least once a year, newspaper articles (mostly from the UK, for some reason) proclaim the death of the genre.
"Humorous women's fiction". Yep, and I'm a Domestic Executive. (Housewife).
Eighty percent, but who's counting…?
Any advance on eighty per cent?…going, going…. 😉
An interesting homage that Bridget Jones's Diary, arguably the mother of modern chick-lit, was based on Pride and Prejudice.
Great post. I have always thought Louis L'Amour is the male equivalent. Love LL.
Sometimes I forget what normal is supposed to look like, so I read chick lit to recalibrate. Except for Jane Austen, which I read just because I love Jane Austen.