The Next Best Thing

A Novel

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At twenty-three, Ruth Saunders headed west with her seventy-year-old grandma in tow, hoping to be hired as a television writer. Four years later, she's hit the jackpot when she gets The Call: the sitcom she wrote, The Next Big Thing, has gotten the green light, and Ruthie's going to be the show-runner. But her dreams of Hollywood happiness are threatened by demanding actors, number-crunching executives, an unrequited crush on a boss, and her grandmother's impending nuptials.
Set against the fascinating backdrop of Los Angeles showbusiness culture, with an insider's ear and eye for writer's rooms, bad behaviour backstage and set politics, Jennifer Weiner's new novel is a rollicking ride on the Hollywood rollercoaster, and a heartfelt story about what it's like for a young woman to love, and lose, in the land where dreams come true.
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Book details:
  • Atria Books | 
  • 400 pages | 
  • ISBN 9781451617757 | 
  • August 2012
$32.99 List Price

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Reading Group Guide

This reading group guide for The Next Best Thing includes discussion questions, ideas for enhancing your book club, and a Q&A with author Jennifer Weiner. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.


Topics & Questions for Discussion

1. What is the significance of swimming in The Next Best Thing? Why do you think it is such a cathartic activity for Ruth?

2. How does Ruth use humor to her advantage? What purpose does it serve her? What did you think about her involvement with Hellsmouth?

3. Throughout the novel, Ruth finds herself in situations where either she is disappointed by people involved in The Next Best Thing, or she knows she will be disappointing others. How does she handle these moments, and should she have handled any of them differently? What does Ruth mean when she says, “I could do it all as long as I felt like my toughness was in the service of something important; that I was protecting the essential heart of my story” (290)?

4. How does the novel depict male-female dynamics in Hollywood? For those people in positions of power, is their gender shown to be part of their success? Do you think that the outcome of The Next Best Thing would have been any see more

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