Why do so many people still love Friends? | Zoe Williams

The 90s were a decade of carefree optimism and comically low stakes. Matthew Perry’s death brings us crashing back into the now In 2004, the author Damian Barr published Get It Together: Surviving Your Quartlerlife Crisis. Barr would go on to write poignant and beautiful books (including the memoir Maggie and Me) but this wasn’t either of those things. It was more of a fun, generational howl: how’s this stuff supposed to work? How are you supposed to become an adult in these conditions? The dream of life in your 20s – flailing around not sure what to do, mooching from one dead-end job to another but still managing to afford a gigantic, lovely flat in the centre of everything, failing romantically, hilariously, while it all turns out for the best, never feeling anxious for no reason or as if you’re slipping through the sieve of polite society, too small and weightless to remain in the in-crowd – well, that dream was cracking a little. As Barr put it in a radio interview, the question, essentially, was this: what if Friends, which by then was in its 10th and final season, wasn’t very true to life?Definitely, the economic winds were changing: wages in the UK started to stagnate in 2003; in the US, graduate wages had been falling since 2000, and health cover cut for young employees, both graduate and not, since 2002. All of this, plus climbing student debt, was dwarfed by the 2007-2008 financial crash, after which everyone got much poorer, much faster. But the casual 90s... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2023-10-30 18:37:24 UTC ]
News tagged with: #radio interview #final season #memoir

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Why do so many people still love Friends? | Zoe Williams'


Ibrahimović shortlisted for William Hill

The shortlist for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award has been announced, with Zlatan... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #william hill


Review: William Boyd's Bond novel 'Solo' puzzles over its mission

The intriguing 007 story isn't beholden to the Bond mystique, both its main strength and biggest weakness.There is no big set piece to open "Solo," the new James Bond novel by British author William Boyd. The secret agent best known as 007 doesn't launch the story with an extravagant car chase,... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #james bond #william boyd #secret agent


People on the Move | 10.24.13

Amy Churgin has been  publisher of Traditional Home magazine. Previously, Churgin was senior vice president of the Condé Nast Media Group where she oversaw corporate media sales across its portfolio of magazine and digital brands.  Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2013-10-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital brands


People of the Book: Spanish-Language Publishing 2013

There is no denying the growing influence the Hispanic population is having on the demographic, social, cultural, and political shifts taking place in the U.S. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #growing influence #hispanic population


Rowan Williams to judge Pushkin House Russian Book Prize

The former Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams is to chair the judging panel for the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-10-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #rowan williams #judging panel


These (Fake) Self–Help Books Diagnose Nearly Every Way People Are Terrible On Social Media

American Psycho author Bret Easton Ellis is what's known in online circles as a world–class troll. For the uninitiated, a troll is someone who expresses a controversial and often contrarian opinion in order to get a rise out of people and draw attention to himself. If someone is widely... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #public library


People on the Move | 10.10.13

Cosmopolitan has recently named Laura Brounstein special projects director. Brounstein formerly served as the editorial director for the Teen Group at Bauer Publishing.   Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2013-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


AUDIO: 'People realise the value of books'

In the world of books, 10 October is Super Thursday - the day many publishing houses release what they hope will be their biggest sellers for the Christmas market. The BBC's Will Gompertz reports. Continue reading at BBC World

[ BBC World | 2013-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #biggest sellers #christmas market


Love, Death, and Nuclear Physics: What’s Hot in the Cool North

Scandinavian publishers at the Frankfurt Book Fair discuss their favorite titles for the fall, for which they are selling the rights to global territories at the fair. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #scandinavian publishers #favorite titles


The Abomination of Ebooks: They Price People Out of Reading

The real problem with ebooks is that they're more 'e' than book, so an entirely different set of rules govern what someone can and can't do with them compared to physical books, especially when it comes to pricing. The collusion in pricing has been a public issue for a while, but we need to talk... Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2013-10-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #real problem #physical books


Coe longlisted for William Hill

Lord Sebastian Coe has been longlisted for the £25,000 William Hill Sports Book of the Year... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-10-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #william hill


William Boyd's Solo reviewed

It's 1969 and James Bond wakes up in The Dorchester in London. It’s his 45th birthday.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-09-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #william boyd #45th birthday


Orion signs Kate Williams fiction

Orion has signed a trilogy of novels from historian Kate Williams. Jon Wood, deputy group... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-09-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #jon wood


National Book Award releases long-list for Young People's Literature

The National Book Awards launched its first long-list with the 10 books in the running for the 2013 award for Young People's Literature on Monday.The National Book Awards launched its first long-list with the 10 books in the running for the 2013 award for Young People's Literature on Monday. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


People on the Move | 9.12.13

  Michael Martin is the new editor-in-chief of Made Man, Break Media’s men’s lifestyle property. Martin was formerly editor-in-chief at Time Out New York. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2013-09-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #michael martin


People Tries New Tiered-Subscription Model

People is revamping its subscription model, putting a premium on its digital products and adding new entry points. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2013-09-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #subscription model #digital products #entry points


Patricia Engel finds wistful romance in 'It's Not Love, It's Just Paris'

In her debut novel, 'It's Not Love, It's Just Paris,' Patricia Engel explores the inner and outer lives of a young Colombian American in the City of Light.Patricia Engel sets her first novel in late '90s Paris, where recent college graduate Lita del Cielo arrives to take language classes for a... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-08-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #short order


E-books 'much more accessible' for blind people

E-book accessibility for readers with sight loss has increased by nearly 40% in the last two... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-08-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #blind people #sight loss


William T. Vollmann, Unabomber suspect, opens his FBI file

Literary fans know William T. Vollmann as a National Book Award-winning author; the FBI knew him as Unabomber suspect S-2047.Literary fans know William T. Vollmann as a National Book Award-winning author; the FBI knew him as Unabomber suspect S-2047. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-08-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


People on the Move | 8.22.13

Andrea Bennett has been appointed as the new editor-in-chief of Niche Media's VEGAS magazine. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2013-08-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #andrea bennett #niche media #vegas magazine