Book Review: "Social Engagement" by Avery Carpenter Forrey

I’m definitely a fan of books that provide social commentary and examine the foibles of their characters. Social Engagement is fascinating but vague at times, like someone is recounting a story but leaving tiny pieces out.

“We all carry this weight: the constantly refreshing feed and the photo memories feature remind us of our rearview even when we want to look forward.”

When the book begins, Callie is sitting in the honeymoon suite of a fancy hotel, still in her wedding dress, eating a pizza. She got married just a few hours earlier and her marriage has already imploded. But what happened?

The book looks back at the year leading up to Callie’s wedding, her obsession with social media, measuring herself against the feeds of others, and chronicling the celebrations of friends. Callie moves in with her childhood best friend Virginia, sharing Virginia’s wealthy parents’ NYC apartment. Callie starts dating Whit, a handsome finance bro, but the reappearance of Virginia’s cousin Ollie, whom Callie secretly dated in college, creates a great deal of upheaval.

This is a character-driven book but there’s certainly plenty of drama, with secrets and hidden resentments about to boil over. Callie isn’t a particularly likable character, but I couldn’t look away from her story. I do wish the ending was a little more definitive, but I definitely found this a fascinating read.