This book only appealed because I love to read stories set in certain places, but what a pleasant surprise. The author recaptured childhood in a way I imagine most adults could relate to. What a childhood it was with a Harvard economics professor father and pianist mother, traveling to Greece and England for months at a time. Of course as a child this does not always seem so much fun. Susanna Kaysen captures the tension of the marriage, the mysteries of adult behavior and the strange interpretations in a child's mind beautifully. Cambridge Massachusetts takes a bit of a back seat to the drama of the story, but I am still glad that I read it. There is a certain type of older woman who lives in Cambridge to whom I refer to as a "Cambridge lady." She is usually smugly indifferent to hair and makeup and tends toward flowing clothing in organic fabrics from shops that also carry chunky fair-trade jewelry. She can be almost aggressively discontent with life, pointing out injustices both personal and global and is generally not my favorite type of person to be around.This book is a thinly-veiled memoir from one of these ladies. We follow Susanna from 7 to 12, as her Harvard professor father's various positions lead them from England to Italy to Greece, always stopping in Cambridge. The young Susanna is insufferable and in perpetually a bad mood for no reason and completely self-centered. There is no plot here and the ending, when the author concludes that she had an unhappy childhood (WTF!?), made me want to claw my eyes out with a spoon and get back all the time I had spent reading this whiny drivel. Hated it.
What do You think about Cambridge (2014)?
Excellent writing, interesting stories. a little something missing. More of a three and a half
—MSkyE
Dull, whiny and most of it doesn't even take place in Cambridge
—urielmota12345
