November 6, 2006

Pretty Persuasion

“Was She Pretty?” by Leanne Shapton

There should be a word for it: that sick fascination some people have with their lovers’ ex-lovers.

Not you, of course. You’re way above that.

But for those who delight in such torture, Leanne Shapton erects a mini monument to it in her wry book, Was She Pretty?

Shapton’s debut is an illustrated gallery of exes. Entire affairs are summed up in single, incisive sentences (Leo’s ex-girlfriend had a cult following; Katya’s ex-boyfriend never stopped sending her postcards) accompanied by elegant Matisse-inspired line drawings.

Especially fantastic are the sequences of linked lovers: Colin’s ex Heather, followed by Heather’s ex Joel, followed by Joel’s ex Marie, in a daisy chain of disappointment, hope, antipathy, longing.

More bitter than sweet, more funny than sad, Was She Pretty? reads like a cross between a children’s book and a collection of poems, with a ferocious Dorothy Parker twist.

We know you wouldn’t be interested. But perhaps “a friend of yours” might be.

Available online at amazon.com.