The Book of Ayn

Author: Lexi Freiman

Who Picked the Book: Lindsay

One-sentence summary: An author who is "cancelled" by society seeks wildly different methods to dealing with that in her life.

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 2

Our favorite thing about it: That it wasn't too long.

Our least favorite thing about it: The poop talk. 

Main Topics of Discussion: Satire, Narcissism, Cancel Culture, 

Our favorite quote: "Artist: a grandiose and insecure person who feels especially destined and uniquely condemned and, deep in their heart, fears that they must be empty."

Notes: Well. We universally disliked this book. We have never rated a book this low before. We all agreed that the poop talk was gross and not appreciated - and there was far too much of it. We felt like the first and second halves of the book felt like two different books. We didn't like the main character at all. We didn't identify with her or her motivations for her terrible decisions. She was actually really annoying. It was overall not an enjoyable read for any of us. We know this book was supposed to be a satire and many reviewers called it "hilarious" and "funny" - we did not find it funny at all. Not even a little bit. We wondered what was supposed to be satirized? Cancel culture? Any Rand? Los Angeles? Maybe all of it? 

In the end, we decided this book was probably written for a very niche group of people who understand a certain New York City and Los Angeles subcultures that we just do not understand. Therefore, the book not only didn't resonate with us, we didn't actually understand the point. There was no plot, no development, no growth, no takeaway. 

Memorable Meeting Moments: We celebrated Rachel's birthday with a dinner at Maggiano's and had our book discussion in the large lobby of Lindsay's hotel. We got to witness a rousing game (or two) of Jenga between a wife and husband, who took photos for us. 

What We Ate: Maggiano's! We had bread with olive oil and balsamic drizzle and shared the fried zucchini appetizer. Our entrees, were: Branzino, fettuccine bolognese, salmon, and shrimp diavolo. We also enjoyed some desserts: chocolate mousse cake, warm apple crostada, and Gigi's butter cake. We were treated to a plate of lemon cookies to celebrate Rachel's birthday.