Serial cyra

The Serial is a very funny book. Although one clearly does not embark on this venture for its character development—all the Bobs, Carols, Teds, and Alices are basically interchangeable—Mrs. McFadden has nevertheless succeeded in spinning a real and compelling tale from the meager stuff of one-liners. Her touch falters only when she becomes merely sarcastic; for the most part, the trenchancy of her portrayals rests on the genuine affection she seems to feel for the objects of her satire.

In fact, the appearance of The Serial invites the thought that the book is directed at the very audience Mrs. McFadden is parodying—i. This raises another question, again having to do with Mrs. Unlike Tom Wolfe, who has bitten into much the same upper-middle-class material with fanged teeth, Mrs.

McFadden has dulled her bite so as not to draw blood: she seems to have half a mind to protect the very society she has undertaken to expose. Perhaps this helps account for her conspicuous avoidance of areas of life—specifically, the political—where, nowadays, really violent passions become engaged.

The plot, which suffers from a Dickensian overpopulation, centers on Kate and Harvey Holroyd. Kate is trying to be more clear and less hung up—i. Along with a dozen secondary characters, they keep secrets and pursue affairs through a storyline that operates on the soap opera principle of cyclically destroying and restoring their lives.

Only in the last quarter does a linear plot kick in. McFadden steers things to a satisfying ending, which is admirable after so much careening, but this book is not about the arc of events.

It is a vehicle for acerbic observations of how people are. Again we read a funny novel with a weak plot. And luckily for me, I didn't have to hold my laughs back as I read. I might have to follow in my parents steps with this book- no, not with any cult joining or consciousness raising.

I remember that they bought copies and gave them to all of their friends, and I'm this close to doing the same. Now if only there was a reprint of the spiral bound version Jan 16, Lauren rated it it was amazing.

My sister and I used to read this every summer to the point where we had worn it out and had to buy a new copy. Now we each own our own copy and it is funnier every time I read it. A wonderful read again and again and I highly recommend everyone to have their own copy or two in case you wear it out!

Jun 15, Paul rated it really liked it Shelves: fiction-literature , reviewed-by-me. This is one of the most deadly, spot-on satires of a specific American time and place ever written. Specifically, this literary skewer pierces the heart of southern Marin County just north of the Golden Gate Bridge in the mid-late Seventies. This was the time of the 'human potential' movement, of Carl Rogers' humanist psychology, of EST, and of lifestyle experimentation born equally from the hangover of Haight Street hallucinogens, the post-Vietnam and post-Watergate withdrawal from the public This is one of the most deadly, spot-on satires of a specific American time and place ever written.

This was the time of the 'human potential' movement, of Carl Rogers' humanist psychology, of EST, and of lifestyle experimentation born equally from the hangover of Haight Street hallucinogens, the post-Vietnam and post-Watergate withdrawal from the public sphere, and Castro Street coming-out, coming into oneself, and just plain coming.

Marriage, the body, the self, sexuality, the environment: all were works in progress, and everything was up for discussion and experimentation except the need for discussion and experimentation.

McFadden catches all of it, with a droll affection that renders the satire all the more effective. It's very nearly ethnography, and it's very funny. Mar 28, Suzanna Stinnett rated it liked it. The Serial was written in chapters and publishing in the local alternative newspaper, the Pacific Sun. I saw Cyra McFadden speak recently at a writer's club meeting, and she revealed the dynamics of writing satire about a place so easy to poke fun at.

Marin County remains a stew of improbable people and scenarios, over thirty years after McFadden's serial. Since I am in the thick of writing my own serial based in the SF Bay area, and I live in Marin County, I read the compiled book version with g The Serial was written in chapters and publishing in the local alternative newspaper, the Pacific Sun. Since I am in the thick of writing my own serial based in the SF Bay area, and I live in Marin County, I read the compiled book version with great interest.

It's almost scary how little has changed. As an author, I could see the difficulty McFadden encountered in keeping the stories going. When she spoke at Book Passage she said it was hard for her to look at the writing now herself, but that's often the author's experience.

She invented the characters and set them loose in the ridiculous landscape of the privileged in the '70s. It's just too repetitive after a few chapters, all the references, the silly language, and the predictable behaviors.

What she was doing, however, was chronicling an era and a locale, and she did it with painful precision. The Serial stands up better if chapters are not read one after the other. Just as they were published, weekly in the Pacific Sun, readers need a rest between the toxic jabs at the poor characters wallowing in the human potential movement and suffering as they simultaneously reach for and avoid the real meaning of personal accountability.

If you're curious about what happened in Northern California in the late 70s, you can get a very clear look at it in Cyra McFadden's book, The Serial. Suzanna Stinnett Episodic skewering of Marin County lifestyles in the s. Not great literature by any means, but humorous and informative about the classic "me decade" lifestyles.

Note: the movie version which I remembered as being bad departs significantly from the book. View 2 comments. Feb 24, Diane rated it it was amazing.

This is a fun satire of middle class white liberals in the 's. Serious Childhood Flashback Although The Serial was written as a satire, the joke, which is an inside joke to anyone who grew up in Marin in the 70's, is that so much of what Cyra McFadden pokes fun at actually happened. As a transplant from Southern California, I arrived in Marin in And it was a happening thing. The constant jibes at consciousness raising, environmental awareness and BEcoming were something integral to life in Marin.

McFadden uses much poetic license in describing the "inter Serious Childhood Flashback Although The Serial was written as a satire, the joke, which is an inside joke to anyone who grew up in Marin in the 70's, is that so much of what Cyra McFadden pokes fun at actually happened.

McFadden uses much poetic license in describing the "interrelationships" scene of that time. The irony is in the core of truth behind her story. I watched my friends parents go through wild changes and never batted an eye.

At age 16, I enrolled in est, Erhard Seminar Training, for personal growth and because it was de riguer.

Much fun is poked at the consciousness raising movement but it was deadly serious. I thoroughly enjoyed McFadden's sense of humor and her attention to detail. Especially the walk down memory lane of historical places in Marin. Ultimately, I had to reflect upon why, when I left California, people I encountered from the rest of the world thought I was such a fruit loop.

A great read. Aug 09, Shannon Appelcline rated it it was ok Shelves: non-genre , locale-california. Martha : You-ness. Sam Stone : [snorts]. Martha : Your-ness. Harvey Holroyd : [whispering] Sickness. Kate Linville Holroyd : [whispering] Harvey! Martha : And now, Bill, I'd like to hear where your head is at. Bill : Thank you, Martha, for pushing my button. Stokely : [shakes head in disbelief]. Bill : Thank you for inviting me to participate in your life, for I am an asshole.

And being an asshole is neither good nor bad. It just is. Reverend Spike : I think that says it all. Harvey Holroyd : [whispering] These are exciting times, aren't they? Gas is over a dollar a gallon and it's okay to be an asshole.

Kate Linville Holroyd : [whispering] Shh! Sign In. Play trailer Director Bill Persky. Top credits Director Bill Persky. See more at IMDbPro. Trailer Video