A girl’s life these days is not as simple as people may think it is. We are certainly freer than our mums and grandmas used to be. Nonetheless, we have to put up with the most demanding pressures: being pretty, being thin, being trendy, always smiling… On top of that, we have to succeed in our careers and get married by 30! While reading Bridget Jones’s diary, I was secretly hoping to find a happy ending, for I recognized myself within some traits of the main character – truth be told: any girl would!
The story is about an ordinary girl, Bridget, who is on her thirties, lives in London and works in publishing. As any girl, she is obsessed with her calorie intake, her inability to cope with bad habits -such as smoking- plus, she desperately wants to find a boyfriend – a mature one, unafraid of commitment. Unfortunately, she falls for the bad kind of guys and, to make matters worse, her family is always trying to fix her up with total strangers. Bridget’s main fear is to die alone and forgotten, only to be found later on, half eaten by an animal.
The characters are remarkably realistic. First there is Bridget, who feels unattractive and awful most of the time, still, she is a lovable character. She has an obnoxious mother and a sympathetic father. At work there is Perpetua – the horrible Sloane woman who bosses her around. Fortunately, Bridget has really good friends: Tom (her best friend), Jude (who is always crying because of her boyfriend, Vile Richard) and Sharon (who doesn’t have a high opinion on men). Bridget´s love life includes Daniel Cleaver, the sleazy boss, who loves flirting with her; and Mark Darcy, the divorced top lawyer, a kind-hearted man whose behavior sometimes terribly annoys her: he is shy, distant and way too formal. This puzzles Bridget, she feels love and hate altogether!
I really like the relationship that Bridget has with her friends, they are extremely loyal, honest and supportive, which I think is very important in anyone’s life. There are parts in the book in which I felt terribly bad about her, one for example, is during the New Year’s Day Turkey Lunch, where she is introduced to Mark – everyone in the room is expecting them to like each other and start dating immediately. It would have been horrible to be on her shoes, feeling rejected by a complete stranger (feeling horrible and embarrassed in front of the entire family). She can´t stop thinking about what her family may think about her: ‘so that’s why Bridget isn’t married’.
Helen Fielding wrote the novel as a real diary, with daily entries. Anne Collins kept the same format which, in my opinion, is a really good thing, since it is the essence of the story. Every month reflects the highs and lows of her life. It is a touching (yet hilarious) story and it is not only Bridget’s account, but a representation of many women’s lives. Helen accurately shows how single girls feel and think. I totally recommend it! It is “chick lit”; nevertheless, men should read it too. It is wondrously funny!