“The Interestings” by Meg Wolitzer was recommended to me by a professor as a great example of writing about friendships and group dynamics. The book is about five friends who meet at a performing arts camp; they manage to keep their friendships alive through adulthood but not without many obstacles and hardships. Wolitzer writes with a sharp, funny voice that is common in popular fiction today. The book takes on the perspectives of all the friends but focuses mostly on the main female character, Jules Jacobsen. Jules is accepted into the friend group last and maintains a certain awe and reverence for the group as a whole, even as she transitions into adulthood.
The group has a sort of mystical feel at the beginning, as the reader encounters them in early adolescence. They all meet and attend Spirit-In-The-Woods camp, which is a camp for talented and creative children. One night, when cementing their friendship, they dub themselves “The Interestings” over vodka and Tang cocktails. They explore their passions, whether it be theater or dance or music, in various degrees as they grow older. Jules becomes close with a waif-like, soft-spoken girl, Ash Wolf. Ash is a twin, her brother being Goodman Wolf, and they serve as a window into a wealthy and beautiful life that Jules had never seen before. Jules maintains her role as the girl on the outside looking in, as her friends leave Spirit-In-the-Woods and become successful in their own rights.
One of the more homely characters, Ethan Figman, becomes a widely successful animator and develops his own TV show. His trajectory in life affects Jules in the way that she views a ‘good life’ and the habits she thinks she must adopt. “The Interestings” reveals the way we constantly compare ourselves to our friends, even if the friendships are strong and genuine. Wolitzer brings competition and insecurity into sharp perspective through warm and witty language. As a senior, this book was particularly poignant, as it explores the uncertainty of identity and how it is often defined by the people you surround yourself with. However, “The Interestings” could appeal to anyone who has ever been part of a great and precious friend group and felt the anxiety that accompanies such a perceived relationship. As college students, we can take comfort in Wolitzer’s characters, who fumble and fall and lean on each other, as all friends do.