Save as Draft

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Save as Draft by Cavanaugh Lee
Simon and Schuster, 256 pages

A broken engagement, a broken heart, and endless drafts of unsent emails. A love triangle unfolding in the electronic age illustrates all that can go wrong (and right) by this new form of miscommunication. Told in “electro-epistolary” form, the novel unfolds entirely through emails and text messages. What do these tools of technology mean for love? What happens when age-old courtship rituals fall prey to the ever-changing sensibilities of how we share not only information, but our own hearts?

I was thrilled to see that Save as Draft was included in Simon & Schuster‘s latest galley grab as I’ve had my eye on it ever since Jill of Breaking the Spine featured this book in a Waiting on Wednesday post. I’m a big sucker for epistolary novels, and I love it even more when they use technology in the story too (case in point: Tweet Heart by Elizabeth Rudnick).

Because I enjoyed the novel so much, I thought of writing a review for it in the way the novel is written. It might get a tad personal and long (just as how I tried to review This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen), but I hope you keep on reading. :P

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from: Tina <hello @ tinamats.com>
to: Achieving Friends :)
date: Mon, Jan 10, 2011 at 7:19 PM
subject: Save as Draft, and all sorts of thoughts

Hello friends!

This may be a very surprising email for you guys to get because…well, do we really communicate using emails now? There’s Facebook and Twitter, and well, there are other ways we can communicate…but indulge me for a while. Sometimes a book can make you do silly stuff. ;)

So I just finished reading this book, Save as Draft by Cavanaugh Lee. It’s this book filled with emails and text messages from this girl, Izzy (a lawyer, but I don’t think she’s the Offshore Injury one), to her friends and her guys. It starts with Izzy in 2008, where she joins an online dating website and meets Marty, a nice and sweet guy who seems to be very interesting. However, even after a great first date, Izzy tells Marty that she has decided to exclusively date her best friend, Peter and she was sorry. Then we are brought back to 2006, where Izzy first meets Peter, and how their relationship started from best friends to lovers.

I’m going to stop there so I won’t spoil you. I thought Save as Draft would be one of those typical chick lit romance novels with only a difference in format being an “electro-epistolary” novel, but I was wrong. I was very pleasantly surprised with this, and you may have seen my tweets during the weekend about this book — I was literally laughing out loud at home while I was reading this because Izzy reminded me SO much of myself. I love Izzy – her over thinking, her flirting, even her depressing moments remind me so much of the times I felt the same thing! Girls, I think we’ll all see some of ourselves in Izzy, or even her friends. The way they exchange emails and all that feels like they were actually exchanging dialogues instead of mere emails, and it’s just like how we tweet each other sometimes, haha. I think we will definitely see some of the guys we know in Peter and Marty, too.

The book is littered with so many funny exchanges that’s the stuff you can see in modern sitcoms but also things you can see in real life. Of course, I’m no judge for that with my still single since birth status, but these are the things we usually talk about, you know?

I think the biggest “lesson” I picked up with Save as Draft is how relationships are never black and white. I’ve talked to some of you about this before, and again, given my single status, I know I’m highly idealistic. That’s why I like books like this — they show a side of reality that I have not yet experienced and give me a bit of a warning, if you may. Something to remind me that things will never turn exactly the way I like it. Remember how I used to say that I wanted a guy who had no issues or hang ups in life just so things won’t be complicated? Well, if I keep on thinking like that, then I know I would never ever settle down with anyone because a guy (or a girl, for that matter) without issues or hang ups does not exist. I think the author was very good at showing that relationships can be messy. There’s no perfect relationship just as there is no perfect person. Even if the person seemed perfect at the start, you’d realize eventually that he’s a workaholic, or he has issues with fat people (this really kind of grated my nerves there) or he’s too presumptuous (haha this reminds me of someone!). It’s all gray and there is never a clear thing, and sometimes you just really have to follow your heart, you know?

And excuse me for being emo there. These are the things we usually talk about when we’re drinking.

I think this is the first time that I was confused at who I wanted the heroine to end up with. I mean, even my Best Friend vs. the Other Guy thing couldn’t decide: Izzy fell for her best friend, but there was also this other perfectly nice guy there that I liked for her…is real life really like this?!

It’s a very, very good book, and I won’t spoil you anymore because I’m going to make you guys read this! I was entertained all throughout, and I bet you guys will, too. Save as Draft is not a relationship manual, but it’s given me a little insight on what I must remember when the day comes that I enter a relationship: (1) never substitute face to face communication with emails/tweets/chats/texts/what-have-you and (2) never let anyone dim my sparkle.

Oh, and never ever do anything you’ll regret when you’re drunk. ;)

Rambling off. Can’t wait to see you guys again — this weekend?

xoxo,
Tina

P.S. I just thought of a perfect Valentine’s Gift. I just hope this book gets to the Philippine shores on time. :)

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If you’re looking for a quick, fun yet meaningful read about relationships and how messy it can be, do get this book. Save as Draft by Cavanaugh Lee will be out in hardcover on February 1 under Simon & Schuster. Cavanaugh talks more about the book in an interview in Building My Life.

Rating: [rating=4]

My copy: ebook ARC from Simon & Schuster Galley Grab

Cover: cavanaughlee.com
Blurb: Goodreads

Other reviews:
Goodreads

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In My Mailbox (13): The First Weeks of January

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It’s been a while since I did an In My Mailbox post, and it’s not because I went on a book buying ban, but because I was just too lazy to make a post about the stuff I got. I thought I’d be able to make it long into a the new year without buying new books, but alas. Who am I kidding?

So this is a consolidated post for the past three weeks of January, and maybe even some in December. If I can remember what I got back then, of course. :P

In My Mailbox is a weekly book meme hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren, where bloggers post about what books received that week, be it via  mailbox, library or store.

BOUGHT:

  1. White Cat by Holly Black – I only got this because Chachic posted a positive review of the book, and see, I’m still easily swayed. It helps that I got the e-galley of the next book from Simon and Schuster, so when I saw this in Fully Booked, I knew I can’t let it go anymore. :P
  2. Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers – Holly reviewed this early this week, and well, consider me sold. I love contemporary and I like reading about high school cliques (sans the scandals, of course), and this one got really good reviews. I’m so glad I spotted this one yesterday when we visited Fully Booked after the FBB/Flippers meet up. :)
  3. Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta – This was actually the first print book I purchased this year. I saw it in Fully Booked Eastwood and didn’t let it go, forgetting that there was a sale that weekend. Pfft. Ah well. :)

GRABBED:

Noli Me Tangere by Jose Rizal, translated by Soledad Lacson-Locsin. At yesterday’s Filipino Book Bloggers/Flips Flipping Pages meet up, someone had this translation of Noli Me Tangere up for book swap. I have been wanting to get my hands on a translated copy of this novel for a long time now, but I wasn’t sure which was the best translation. This one was what Blooey and the Flippers read last year, and is said to be a really good translation. I got it and no one stole it from me, so…yay. Finally!

Now a little backgrounder: Noli Me Tangere is written by the Philippines’ National Hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. This is a required reading in high school, but I never really read the novel in its entirety because our copy in high school was the summarized version (no, it’s not abridged, if you’re thinking that’s the term — it was actual chapter summaries that we had to summarize for another report. Hmph). I figure in my life as a reader, I must read this novel at least once in my life. So yay.

The bookmark is one of the giveaways for the Flippers meet-up. :)

GIFTED/BORROWED:

  1. Captivating by John and Stasi Elredge – this is a Christmas gift from my friend RE. I’ve read this one in college and it was one of those good books for women that I really liked. My mom has my other copy of this and I don’t even know where it is right now. Haha. I don’t know if I will read this anytime soon, but it’s nice to know I have another copy here to refer to when I need it. :)
  2. Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis – this is lent to me by RE, too, and this is the best C.S. Lewis work according to him. This is only a lending copy though. Heh. I have a feeling I’ll like this one, too, and I’ve reserved it for February reading already. Now to find a copy of this one. Hmm.

WON:

Being Jamie Baker by Kelly Oram. I’ve seen this book from Kai‘s blog, and I added it on my wish list for the sheer pink-ness of it. :P I followed the author on Twitter, then on Facebook for her contest and even exchanged tweets with her during NaNoWriMo. I never expected to win because I’m not really lucky with winning, but lo and behold: I was her second winner! :) Thanks, Kelly!

This kind of took its sweet time to arrive at home, and I thought it would be lost in the mail forever, but good thing it arrived just before 2010 ended. :) I love how pink the book really is. :D The book is signed, too:

EBOOKS:

I got too many ebooks since December. Talk about crazy buying binge? Sort of. :P I also got a ton of e-galleys from Simon and Schuster’s Galley Grab. :D

Bought:

  • Miss Match and Match Point by Erynn Mangum
  • Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John – loved this!
  • Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen – my physical copy is with some friend, so I splurged on an ebook.
  • Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro – loved this, too! Review coming up soon
  • Infinity by Sarah Dessen

For Review:

  • Save as Draft by Cavanaugh Lee
  • Ten Miles Past Normal by Frances O’Roark Dowell
  • Kat, Incorrigible by Stephanie Burgis
  • Red Glove by Holly Black
  • Stay by Deb Caletti
  • Invincible Summer by Hannah Moskowitz

There is probably more, but I forgot about them.

I know I said I won’t be stressing over my TBR, but I really think I should get to reading the other books that are starting to pile up in the apartment, the ones I acquired before 2010 ended. I really should work on that. I should.

Yeah, I always say that. :P I bet most of you guys do too. :P

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