"Goodnight Nobody" is the story of Kate Klein, a mother of three who stumbles upon a fellow suburban mother, Kitty, dead in her kitchen. No one knows who committed the crime, and the case becomes a huge source of confusion, curiosity and worry throughout town. Kate finds herself unable to keep from investigating the case-partly because of her inherent curiosity and partly to fill the void hanging over her. As Kate delves further into the investigation, we also learn about her past with the man who broke her heart, and about her many insecurities in the present. However, Kate discovers that while she always envied Kitty, it is Kate who is the lucky one.
The exploration of Kate's personal issues makes "Goodnight Nobody" believable: It heightens character development, making the book not merely a murder mystery but a well-rounded novel. Weiner's tell-all style makes Kate a sympathetic character because she is so clearly flawed and at the same time more wonderful than she knows; she seems real. For example, Kate admits that while she loves her children, she is overwhelmed by them. She also admits that she "settled" for her husband while remaining in love with another man, which leads her to wonder wistfully what would have happened if she hadn't gotten married. These regrets and what-ifs prompt feelings of guilt, confusion and self-censorship, but Kate is brave enough to acknowledge and contemplate them (although in an utterly human fashion, she is afraid to confide them to other characters). Our omniscient peek into Kate's thoughts and feelings is delightful, and the technique makes Kate very realistic and endearing.
However, one who has read Weiner's first three novels cannot help but experience a little déjà vu courtesy of the lovely Kate. She just bears all too much resemblance to both Cannie from "Good in Bed" (2002) and Becky from "Little Earthquakes" (2004): the sarcastic humor, intelligence, curiosity, kindness and even the dark curly hair, plus-size figure and resultant body image issues. In a nutshell, Kate is an extremely sympathetic, "Hey–she's like me!" character for many women and (perhaps not by coincidence) seems to be cast from the same mold as Weiner herself. But while Kate is a spunky, realistic, sympathetic character, the fact remains that she is not very different from the characters we have grown to love in previous books of Weiner's. It would be nice to see a different kind of protagonist from the author, who appears to be up to the challenge, considering all of her interesting supporting characters, like opera diva Reina and unbelievably sassy best friend Janie.
This faux pas may be forgettable and forgivable, however, in light of the fact that Kate, and the story that we behold entirely through her eyes, is hilarious. Weiner is smart, honest and funny, and so is Kate. Weiner may have just decided to stick with a character that was already great and not try to fix it if it's not broken. She could arguably change it up slightly and still preserve that wit.
Ultimately, "Goodnight Nobody" is too reminiscent of Weiner's old stuff, with murder thrown in for a little suspense and variety. Amazingly enough, thanks to Weiner's graceful, engaging prose, it still works. Hopefully, though, Weiner's future books will step outside the box, showing readers the full extent of what she can do.
Weiner's first novel, "Good in Bed," rocketed up The New York Times bestseller list. It was optioned by HBO and plans for a TV show are currently in the works. The movie based on "In Her Shoes" (2003), also a bestseller, has already finished filming and opens Oct. 7. Weiner's third book, "Little Earthquakes" was also a best seller and was optioned by Universal Pictures. If you like Jennifer Weiner, you might also enjoy short novels by Laurie Notaro or the work of Helen Fielding, author of "Bridget Jones's Diary."