**Spoilers ahead for Taylor Jenkins Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, except for reason number 6 which is just a summary
ofEvelyn's character.
I’m sort of ashamed to admit that I’m not actually the biggest reader. I mean, I read probably more than the average person does and I felt pretty good about myself when I watched that Jimmy Kimmel YouTube video where several adults fail to even name a book they’ve read (one of them being a literal librarian). But like I say I’m not the most avid reader in the world, sometimes it takes me a while to click with a book properly and get past unnecessary filler. Which is a big part of why The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is the perfect read for me.
It’s the perfect read for anyone, actually, or...well, actually I guess that’s not true. If you’re not a fan of gay people, I guess you won’t be like it. Sucks that you’ll miss out, I suppose; to be honest, there are so many reasons I love this book, but I thought this would be a clever format for a post (as clever as I can be) so here are seven reasons The Seven Husbands is my new favourite book, and potentially seven reasons the...thirty or so of you who’ll read this would enjoy reading it too. Or if not, go onto Netflix next year and watch the movie.
1) The format
I haven't read Taylor Jenkins Reid's later book, Daisy Jones and the Six (now being made into a miniseries on Amazon Prime) which apparently is made up of an even more impressive interview format. But honestly, I felt the switch in perspective is perfectly handled as I had feared once Evelyn started telling her story-and she becomes the first person, past tense narrator-that we might not hear from Monique, the first person, present tense narrator whom Evelyn is telling the story to, for a long time. But the novel seems to perfectly balance Evelyn's story with elements of Monique's, pausing from the bright lights of the 1950s to 80s at just the right time to flip to Monique's more down-to-earth (but increasingly successful) life in 2017. I feel this is a surprisingly significant detail as the novel manages to flow but still pause for breath every once in a while, thus the pacing is perfect and we get just the right amount of insight from two genuinely interesting individuals' lives.
2) Dialogue
Like I said, I felt there was basically no unnecessary filler in the novel, and the dialogue definitely contributes to it basically never feeling slow or boring. It's a good pace, never going too fast, but it also doesn't feel boring at all, and I feel that the fact the dialogue being both frequent and witty is a big reason for this. Jenkins Reid also knows exactly how to write heartfelt and serious dialogue, case in point both times Celia leaves Evelyn were absolutely soul-destroying in different ways, the first being a more bitter departure, the second a more gut-wrenchingly sad one. Not every line is perfect, there's one from Celia where she insults Evelyn by essentially saying she's nothing more than a nice pair of tits, which felt off to me, but overall the dialogue is excellent. It's written just well enough to be heartfelt rather than sappy in the more romantic interactions, the serious dialogue strikes a chord in the reader because it feels genuine and never forced, and the more bantery, witty dialogue (especially between Celia and Evelyn) is consistently extremely enjoyable.
3) The depiction of fame and Hollywood
I think the lesson Evelyn learns about fame-that it can be genuinely enjoyable, but the enjoyment pales into insignificance compared to the love of those closest to her-is actually very interesting. At the time in which she rose to fame and in the modern day, celebrities are put on pedestals and their culture is seen as aspirational, but at the same time many are sceptical of their relevance to our lives. The story does display the glamorous bright lights of movie premieres and whilst we see the insidiousness of the press in its full extent, the snippets of newspaper articles are pleasing to the eye, because (for me at least) it's always more convincing of how real the lives of the characters in a fictional world are by journalistic on them. Jenkins Reid does portray to us why Evelyn is so ambitious, because she makes the world of Hollywood Evelyn enters feel desirable to us. Yet at the same time we see that world for its faults as well. This is partly because of how the press-so fixated on her because she is so famous-treats her for her radical sexuality and gossips about her romantic relationships, but also because we see fame for its triviality; by the end of the novel it is explicitly stated Evelyn has lost all affection for fame, and she is a recluse by the time Monique Grant meets her in 2017. We get a really complex message regarding fame by Taylor Jenkins Reid: that Evelyn (and the reader) is not shallow for seeking fame-it is a very desirable thing- but we are naive, because if we experienced it in the entirety of its suffocating nature we wouldn't glorify it so much.
4) It is very bold and sensitive in its addressing of social issues
It's kind of incredible to me how much care is taken in this regard. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo addresses the hardships LGBTQ+ people endured throughout the 20th century all the way through to today, female sexuality, the grotesque scandal-mongering of Western media, domestic abuse, the treatment of black and Latin Americans, the nature of illegal abortions (a theme all the more prevalent today), and I don't even think I remembered everything that's addressed. But nothing feels at all like it's forced in, which means nothing's limited in its importance because all of these are treated like important topics that don't distract from the plot. I'm probably being a little idealistic, someone will tell me one of these issues Jenkins Reid didn't get quite right, but I stand by the fact that she normalised 'uncomfortable' taboo topics in this work of fiction, which has got to be worth something. She takes care with these topics, she goes deeper than the surface level of race and sexuality, but discusses the nuances of biracial people like Monique and bisexual people like Evelyn suffering from being put into binaries. Essentially, the themes of the novel are really cool and complex and I hope GCSE/A Level English students study it one day because they deserve a genuinely engaging book for a change.
5) The characters (other than Evelyn)
Evelyn is so good she deserves her own section, but generally the characters are extremely solid Even if they aren't likeable characters, each of Evelyn's husbands are unique characters and the way the dynamics of each of her marriages differ is engaging. Celia St James and Harry Cameron are largely the most prevalent two people in Evelyn's life, and I enjoy their presence wholeheartedly because they give a more lighthearted compassion to Evelyn's sharp shrewdness. I feel like Monique Grant as the modern day protagonist is really compelling to me in a different way to Evelyn in the 50s, because sure, her life isn't as soap opera-esque as Evelyn's, but it makes her feel very grounded and thus her growth in confidence throughout the novel feels honestly really relatable and empowering. Her taking inspiration from Evelyn to be more bold and not set the bar so low in her expectations of herself and her demands from others is something that may seem mundane, but because of this it feels like her arc is even more rewarding. Not every character is amazing; in particular I feel John Braverman, Harry's partner, isn't given enough development for his death to feel as heartbreaking as it's supposed to, but overall the characters are excellent. One, in particular, is more amazing than the others....
6) Evelyn Hugo is an absolutely brilliant character
You could say I'm stretching it out, but I...wouldn't. Evelyn is a truly fantastic character, and the reader should love her because they aren't supposed to love her-Evelyn makes it very clear that she doesn't consider herself to be at all a good person. Now, whether she is is debatable, but regardless she is probably one of the most morally complex characters I've encountered in literature. And that's why she's an incredible one, because she has such complexity. Evelyn is unapologetically manipulative, often brash, blunt, arrogant and selfish, but she is also charming, brave, charismatic, fiercely protective of her loved ones and capable of genuine kindness. Her emotions rule her and this leads to her being an incredible, unique person, even when she does terrible things along the way. Often in TV shows or books I feel it is a very dangerous line to tread when writing a morally complex character, because usually it ends up with me feeling more one way than another. Yes they may be complex but I feel the writers of these characters unintentionally make them overall do more good than evil, or vice versa. Evelyn is an exception. She is a perfectly balanced character because I don't know how I should feel about her, and because of this, I know she's a brilliantly written character. She's engaging, badass, cruel, kind and has extraordinary depth.
7) Evelyn's relationships
Because she's a very flawed character to say the least, this has a huge impact on the relationships she forges with other people, not just her husbands. Beginning with her husbands, her shamelessly manipulation results in her essentially fooling two of her husbands into being with her (husband no.1 Ernie Diaz, and husband no.3 Mick Riva), and in actuality she only truly fell in love with one of her husbands, no.2, Don Adler, who in a cruelly ironic way, treated her the worst. The others were a virtual business arrangement with husband no.4, Rex North, a 'beard' marriage to her best friend Harry Cameron, no.5, an unhappy begrudging marriage to Maxime Girard, no.6, and finally a cover-up marriage to the brother (Robert Jamison) of the true love of her life, Celia St James. Her relationships with her husbands are all unique and fascinating in their own way (as toxic as some of them acted) because they carry such varying dynamics within their marriages. However, her relationship with Celia displays the depths of her character in action and how, when their relationship gets harder, her choices can be destructive. Both of their separations are triggered by radical action on Evelyn's part, and we see through their relationship how Evelyn's actions genuinely have consequences, that her actions (though calculated) are rash and though they may be well-intentioned, they are not necessarily correct, thus her character affects the people around her, including the one who means the most to her. Her romantic relationships illustrate the drastic nature of the decisions she makes based on the feelings of her heart, not her head, but she portrays a cooler head in her friendship with Harry and her relationship with her daughter, Connor. She and Harry have quite an equal friendship and eventually co-parent partnership, and Evelyn is initially tentative approaching Connor after her father's death, but I really found it heartwarming when Evelyn steps up and insists that when they move they have dinner together nightly and Connor receives therapy. Given the place they were in at the time Evelyn did this, other authors might have stretched the tension between them out and have us dislike Connor for being so cold with Evelyn, but with this interaction we fully see growth on Evelyn's part in being firm that Connor doesn't shut her out. Overall the relationships, even in a high society, bright lights world, are brutally realistic, intriguing and the partly destructive, partly shrewd nature of Evelyn's character is seen in full effect in each one of them.
My closing thoughts are, if I were the one making a movie adaptation of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo....what exactly would I change? I pray Netflix doesn't screw it up.
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