Laura Zigman

Laura Zigman was one of those authors whose first book, 1998's Animal Husbandry, came out hot on the heels of Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary, and because it was also a story about a romance-obsessed thirty-something woman, it was pretty much dismissed as just another Bridget Jones knock-off. This has always irritated me, since the two novels are completely different--Bridget Jones is the kind of story that makes its readers giggle; Animal Husbandry is the kind of story that makes them cackle. Evily. Zigman's book is about a woman named Jane Goodall (...yeah, like that Jane Goodall) who, after her boyfriend abruptly dumps her, becomes completely obsessed with understanding why. She eventually develops what she calls the "Old Cow/New Cow theory", with which she attempts to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt (by citing countless examples of male skirt-chasing in the animal kingdom) that men are biologically programmed to be complete dickheads. This is not a book to read if you're in the mood for something warm and fuzzy, but if you're looking for a story with a nasty little bite to its humor, Animal Husbandry is a very good time.

Aftertaste:
Well, Animal Husbandry was made into a fairly crappy movie with a depressingly saccharine moral. Bleagh!

Availability:
Everywhere.

Other Recommendations:
Anything by Mary Kay Andrews

Anything by Cynthia Heimel

Website:
http://www.laurazigman.com/ -