This book claims to be a novel, but it's really a series of short stories, all concerning a clique of girls from Philadelphia who get jobs (mostly) in New York. They may not be cheerleaders exactly, but they seem to share a similar sort of mentality, being privileged, well-educated, pretty girls who get jobs in areas like publishing, and when they don't, sourly contemplate how these are "not the kind of people (they are) supposed to be around". The men they date are two-dimensional and described in terms of their physical attractiveness or lack thereof (making this rather like a lot of novels by male authors, I suppose). One of the least pleasant chapters concerns a member of their set who will only go out with ugly men. Another woman wails when she is set up with an overweight date: "What about me says, Set me up with an obese person?" Two or three of the short stories have genuine humour and show our protagonists in a more sympathetic light. One, entitled "Showers", is a neat illustration of the giddy excess and embarrassing silliness of pre-wedding rituals. Another, "Button", follows a young woman's underground power struggle with her mother-in-law. Close does best when she writes about the girls as children, or when they interact with children. This is when they come across as real human beings, perhaps because these women are nowhere near growing up. By the end of the book, there is no sense that they have developed any further than the people they were at the beginning. Oh, I might be missing the point. Perhaps I'm failing to notice devilishly clever social satire, but the fact is, none of these women are appealing, hold my interest, nor resemble anyone I would care to meet in real life.

This novel takes the mismatched expectations and realities faced by young 20-somethings and has fun with it. Futile career attempts, dead-end relationships and sharing of cramped apartments . . . Okay, maybe not so fun, but aren't you glad that's over with! Yes, it's chick lit, and perfect summer beach reading.

This book is about the late twenty-something crowd who must endure the endless wedding invitations and watching friends start families. Sometimes it was a bit confusing to follow which character was which in each chapter. Overall a quick and easy read.

Fast-paced and light, however when I finished it I realized it was darker than I expected and I felt somewhat depressed. The story seemed random and it didn't really go anywhere...I think it was probably written that way on purpose. I didn't feel a real connection with any of the characters, but overall it was okay.

A good book, but the large amount of characters made it difficult to follow. Seemed like by the time I got to the end of the book I was just beginning to put names to stories.

"Girls in White Dresses" tells 17 loosely related tales of three female protagonists (plus friends of friends, siblings and colleagues) all looking for love in New York. The men they date, stoners, mama's boys and pretentious bartenders, seem as unfabulous as the sweltering, vermin-infested city in which they live but Jennifer Close entertainingly juxtaposes horror stories with descriptions of the "wedding dream." Such a dream never quite materializes, though: one character's obnoxious friend from college steals and marries her ex, another's boyfriend spends less time with her and more time on the campaign trail with an unnamed presidential candidate from Illinois, and a classic "bridezilla" feels her party unfairly ruined by a great-aunt's death. The book provides a light-hearted, smile-inducing and enjoyable read even while it relies heavily on familiar archetypes and easy divisions between frenemy marrieds versus quirky singletons. The characters often blend into each other and each is equally prone to some painfully clichéd laments but frustration ultimately meets with satisfaction when the three reminisce over a bottle of tequila in a box-filled apartment. Female friendship indeed prevails.

Bridezillas! "Close tells 17 loosely related tales of ladies – the two together with their other friend, Lauren, plus friends of friends, siblings and colleagues – looking for love in New York. Unlike a certain sexy show, the city is refreshingly unfabulous, and Close (a former New Yorker) thrives at capturing the sweltering heat, the vermin scratching in the walls and that unshakeable feeling that a stranger will push you onto the subway track." Rosemary Counter Globe and Mail August 26 2011