Was She Pretty?

In this brilliant gem of a book, artist/writer Leanne Shapton weaves together a voyeuristic tale of love and life through epigrammatic vignettes and sleek line drawings. Entire relationships are encapsulated in a few, stingingly perfect lines:  Colleen was Walters's ex-girlfriend from med school. She loved to dance with men at weddings.

 Pricking our insecurities, Shapton introduces us to Kim, whose ex kept prayerful of love letters in a kitchen drawer. . . She would stare at it while she cooked. And Bens ex, a physiotherapist for the U. S. men's and women's Olympic swim teams. She wore small white shorts year-round.

This book is a collection of stories about jealousy, told by Shapton's friends. She interviews each person and, in writing the story, she puts herself in her friend's place. 

The book can be compared to Griffin and Sabine because it's about daily life and relationships. It reminds me of An Exaltation of Larks because it is a story about people who are attracted to each other but don't know how to communicate their feelings. Was She Pretty? is similar to William Steig's work because both authors write about human nature and relationships.