"Pick Me Up" by: zoe rice Book Review

With chapters named for bad pick-up lines, I knew after skimming through this book at the library, I had to give Zoë Rice a try. Pick Me Up was in the romance section, so I was a little hesitant. But my mind was quickly put to ease as a laughed out loud the first afternoon I picked it up, and had a hard time putting it back down.

Do you believe in love at first sight, or should I walk by again?

Sex and the City let the rest of the world in on a little secret… being a confident, hard-working, harder playing socialite with tons of friends and tons of money is AWESOME! Given the right set of circumstances, and the right set of gene’s that would transform me into Sarah Jessica Parker, I would make an awesome socialite. Just not the Sex and the City variety.Would you like a raisin? How ‘bout a date?

Instead, I dream of being Izzy from Rice’s Pick Me Up. She’s a more practical character. Not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. She’s real.

If I told you that you had a great body, would you hold it against me?

Real friends that any woman would fantasize about. A wonderful best friend who just happens to be one of New York’s best celebrity “handler“. A funny and awkward newspaper journalist who writes a relationship advise column so popular it transforms his status in life overnight. A, somewhat cartoon-ish and over-the-top gay boss. I guess since the book rotates around the art world, Rice felt obligated to stay a little stereotypical when it came to the “fill-in” characters surrounding her gallery.


You look like a masterpiece - so how “bout I be the master and you give me a piece?

The dream job! Art director for a smaller gallery where she has a good amount of leg-room to go about business as she sees fit. That is until….

Would you like gin and platonic or do you prefer Scotch and sofa?


Nope. I won’t ruin it. It’s a pivotal part of the novel. But, whatever does happen that I’m not spoiling, causes two new men to come crashing into Izzy’s life. One, a laid back, rude, full of himself artist who immediately bumps heads with and constantly teases our hero. The other, a man who in the embodiment of everything Izzy thinks she wants in a man.

May I have this dance … horizontally?

The characters dance their way though life, each learning a little bit about each other and a lot about themselves. Pick Me Up isn’t a coming of age novel - per say - but there is definitely some growing up done as the chapters progress.

If I could rearrange the alphabet, I’d put U and I together.

Never boring and frequently laughable, Izzy’s life spirals up then down then up - you get my drift. Zoë Rice is an artist of discription, a master of sarcasm, and a new addition to my “must read” list of authors. And she has a great blog too!

You look like you’ve heard every line in the book. So what’s one more?