Book Review: Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

I vowed to read all of Rainbow Rowell’s works after I finished reading Eleanor & Park. For me, Eleanor & Park is one of a kind, so I got really curious whether her other works are just as good. Well, Attachments didn’t disappoint.

Attachments is set up in the 90s to early 2000s when email was still the primary way of officemates to communicate. Instant messaging at that time wasn’t that big of a thing yet, kids! Haha! Lincoln’s job as internet security is to check and read other people’s email messages. He hated his job. I could feel him because Rowell made him so smart to be just snooping around other people’s businesses. But his most hated thing in the world inadvertently led him in finding true love. He got so caught up reading the funny email exchanges between Jennifer and Beth, without realizing that he’s already falling for Beth.

The book is told mostly in two ways – through Lincoln’s perspective and the funny correspondences between Jennifer and Beth. That alone made this book so interesting. While I was reading the first few chapters of the book, I found myself losing my grip. It got a bit boring as Rowell talks about a lot of things that I feel were not relevant to the story. But I got to bounce back and learned to enjoy every single detail of the book. (I don’t think this is a book for people who are impatient!) Reading Jennifer and Beth’s messages is very funny and utterly entertaining. It’s like being able to get first dibs on office gossips! It’s very realistic too because that’s really how girlfriends talk! No filters at all!

One thing I really loved with this book was how Rowell managed to make me feel all giddy even if the two main characters didn’t meet until the last few pages of the book. The author has magically translated what CONNECTION is all about. One thinks that love at first sight is absurd without realizing that falling in love without even knowing what a person looks like is actually possible, and overly romantic, too!

Most of the romantic books I read were told from a woman’s perspective. Attachments broke the stereotype by letting Lincoln tell the story. It’s quite refreshing to read a love story from a man’s point of view. We’re so used to reading girls who find out that their crush has a crush on them too. Ask your boyfriend or your husband to tell your love story, and you’ll definitely get the opposite of what really happened. That’s why reading a love story through Lincoln’s narration is so cute!

Lincoln and Beth both came from a relationship which they thought were there to last. I know that a lot of people can relate as to how difficult it is to move on from a long term relationship. It’s as if your whole world has been shattered, and you think that it would be impossible to start all over again. I therefore conclude that reading Attachments might be therapeutic for those who are trying to move on from a breakup! Hahaha!

I also love the fact that this is more than just a love story. It talks a great deal about friendship, resolving parent-child conflicts, spreading your wings and chasing your dreams, and finding second chances. It’s a book about self-discovery too. It talks about how some people who are so broken take all the time in the world to move on and face the ghosts from their past. It is also a story of how a person changes the way he or she looks at love.

Rowell powerfully described the kind of love that roots from the most unexpected place. I really like how she describes the kind of love that people like Beth and Lincoln deserve. I didn’t think I’d like this book given the rather slow pacing at the beginning, but I still enjoyed reading it. It definitely gave me the perfect dose of laughter and kilig! If you’re looking for a light, feel good read, grab Attachments from the book stand! =) Now, what Rainbow Rowell book should I read next? Fangirl, maybe?! =)