Read Bottom Up

by Neel Shah, Skye Chatham

A charming novel about falling in love (or like) in the digital age—the never-before-seen full story

Madeline and Elliot meet at a New York City restaurant opening. Flirtation—online—ensues. A romance, potentially eternal, possibly doomed, begins.

And, like most things in life today, their early exchanges are available to be scrutinized and interpreted by well-intentioned friends who are a mere click away.

Madeline and Elliot's relationship unfolds through a series of thrilling, confounding, and funny exchanges with each other, and, of course, with their best friends and dubious confidants (Emily and David). The result is a brand-new kind of modern romantic comedy, in format, in content, and even in creation—the authors exchanged e-mails in real time, blind to each other's side conversations. You will nod in appreciation and roll your eyes in recognition; you'll learn a thing or two about how the other half approaches a new relationship . . . and you will cheer for an unexpected ending that just might restore your faith in falling in love, twenty-first-century style.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Chick Lit, Contemporary, Adult, Humor, Adult Fiction

239 pages, Hardcover

First published June 17, 2014

Reviews

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was interesting and completely different than anything I've read before. It was written completely in email and text messages. Madeline and Elliot meet each other and you get an inside look into their personal conversations. It's basically showing a love story in the digital age.

The coolest thing about this was that the two authors wrote it by actually composing these email messages to each other. Madeline and Elliot also had two friends who got to weigh in their thoughts on the relationship. Madeline would forward messages to her friend Emily asking for advice, and Elliot would do the same to David. The authors didn't know what was written between each others "best friends".

This was fine.... nothing mind blowing. It did make me want to roll my eyes a few times. Jealously, stupidity, immaturity.... all that. (If he's not making any time for you and takes 14 hours to respond two words... move on!!) However, I can guarantee if anyone on the outside read the personal convos of a young couple they would make you want to puke at times because of how annoying they are! There were also sweet, charming, and funny parts. This is probably one of the more realistic, authentic "love stories" one could create on paper in today's world.

[Patricija · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, fluffy book about a relationship.
I loooved the e-mail form, and little illustrations.
A really fast paced book for February, or between books.
Quite forgettable though, and the story is nothing special. Would still recommend if you're in a slump and need something fast to read

[Kristine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Original review can be found at http://kristineandterri.blogspot.ca/2...

I received an advanced readers copy from Dey Street Books via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

The very first thing that I have to say about this book is that it is super easy to read and can be read in one sitting in about an hour or so. I'm not kidding...it is that quick of a read. The entire book is made up of emails and text messages between four people and it tells a relationship story through this method.

I have read books done in this style before where it was quite effective. I did however think that the synopsis made the story out to be more than it actually was. The story itself was not as good as what the synopsis made it sound. Yes, it had some humorous moments and it was interesting to read through the emails and texts but there wasn't a whole lot of depth. I completely understand the texting part of the story but do friends actually still email each other with this kind of stuff? For a quirky book that is meant to bring us to today's world it seemed to date it a little. I apologise if I am wrong but speaking for myself I can say that I don't think I have emailed a friend in over a decade. I think that it would have made more sense if it had been done completely in text.

The story in short is a very quick and condensed technological view of a new relationship between two people and how it plays out. With it being done through email and text, the reader hears about the goings on after the fact and is never really a part of the couple connecting or falling in love. I wasn't routing for the couple one way or the other and didn't love or hate them. It was really too quick to connect with the characters or story. Basically it was just an interesting and entertaining way to get lost for an hour or two on a snowy afternoon.

[Wardah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Baca ini karena Rezza bilang bisa kelar cepat. Nyatanya, nggak juga. Karena (1) butuh waktu untuk nyambung dengan format nulisnya, (2) banyak spasi dan bagian nggak perlu kayak pembuka tiap surel yang udah tau ngga perlu tapi tetap terbaca, dan (3) emosi karakternya ... nggak terasa sehingga di 1/3 awal saya tinggalkan sebelum saya lanjut tadi malam.

Selepas masuk dalam gaya menulisnya, novel ini emang bisa dibaca cepat karena aslinya isinya ngga banyak. Kisahnya realistis sih tapi yang bikin saya genapin jadi 3 bintang adalah twistnya.

Edit. Ternyata bisa dimasukin siapa yang rekomen. Oke deh. Makasih ya, Rezza.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Neel Shah / Skye Chatham
Read Bottom Up - Baca Sampai Habis!
Gramedia Pustaka Utama
336 pages
4.5

In Read Bottom Up, Neel Shah & Skye Chatham breeze through the limitation of contemporary epistolary, yet struggle in creating plot.

Contemporary epistolary, or modern one, is usually served in forms of e-mails, chats, handwritten notes, and its combination with typical chicklit is not something that hasn't been attempted before. Meg Cabot's Boy trilogy or even I--back then when I still have a lot of spare time--have been enchanted by the narrative and creative power that this method has. For example, you can use slang without italicizing it, and you're allowed to use emoticon, or it's okay to have typos, because it mimics your natural conversation and behavior, so that's that. A good epistolary should justify why they must use this method to communicate with each other.

Read Bottom Up initially effectively utilizes the strengths of modern epistolary and its limitation. With only four characters, Shah & Chatham can convey their messages with such efficacy. Though it's sometimes boring since you are only acquainted with four personalities that in some part blend together, these limited characters can make the readers follow the plot easily, something that hurdles the enjoyment of epistolary. Yet, they still haven't managed it. Here's the thing. This kind of narrative takes so much space because of formatting and e-mail addresses that you won't read. What seems to be 300 pages is actually just, let's say, 200 pages. Read Bottom Up fails to realize this hurdle and it keeps on babbling until page 300, then the authors take on different route that leaves you "What?" It makes your first 300 page useless and pointless. Such unfortunate, especially since it's been awhile since I've read modern epistolary--though Illuminae doesn't count; it's on different level.

[Andrea Guy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you have an hour or so?

Do you want to read something fun and a little bit quirky?

If you do, you might want to pick up Read Bottom Up.

I read this in one sitting and I didn't want it to end.

Its a relationship story, but not really a romance, and its told through a series of emails between the couple; Madeleine and Elliot and their BFFs, Emily and David.

These emails will have you laughing quite a bit as the relationship progresses. Madeleine and Elliot are two people that really shouldn't be together. They are really very two different people that are at different places in their lived.

Madeleine is by far the more mature of the two. She is looking for more than just fun, though she does her fair share of partying. Elliot is just a good time boy. He's not the type that's really looking for anything permanent.

The emails that are exchanged are fabulous and so are David and Emily. The friends really keep them grounded.

So if you are looking for something fun and fast paced, this is definitely your book.

Highly recommended!

[Cathrine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I predict this is going to be this summer beach read ;-)
delicious ;-)
I read it on the way to the dentist with a big smile on my face all the way (through) ;-)

Rated for that experience alone ;-)
Chick litt / beach read.
Have fun - it's yum ;-)

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

3 stars for normals; 5 stars for freak shows like me who love all epistolary novels.

[Calliss · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, to be honest, I was a bit bored by this book.

The main-characters werent interesting (I liked the best-buds better) and I did not really care what happened in their releationship.

Also, even though I know it supposed to show that they wrote emails, I got a bit irritated with all that extra text all the time.

Not really a book for me, but at least an easy read.

[bri · Rating 1 out of 5]

My god. This book was awful. I needed to take a whole day after finishing this to think about how to rate it and everytime I thought about it I got angrier. Realistically, this is something I should have loved because I'm a sucker for books told in email format but hoooo boy. Slurs were used, slut shaming was key, there were so many uncomfortable lines and it doesn't help when the characters are so unlikable. The concept is great, and in the author's note they said they wanted to make the relationship as realistic as possible by showing the good and the bad parts, but when all of them are the bad parts unless they're having sex we have a problem... Anyway this sucked and I wouldn't really recommend to anyone but it looks like I'm in the minority about how not good this book was

[Sandy Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of READ BOTTOM UP via an online giveaway. The novel is a quick read that offers insights on relationships via emails and text messages from the male and female point of view as well as the point of view of their best friends. A mixture of fun and quirkiness with a big dash of truth makes this novel a recommended, entertaining read.

[Natalie (Natflix&Books) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute and fast. Reminiscent of Meg Cabot's "boy series" (Boy Next Door etc) but not quite as fun or engaging. Still I enjoyed it. Also, am glad I am married and don't have to go through this ever again.

[Caitlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this. It was light, easy and captured my friendship group perfectly. It's not the deepest or most complex story ever but it definitely resonated. It was as if it was written by my friends. Loved the witty repartee and pop culture references.

[Lexi Kruse · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will always be a big fan of stories told through emails/texts which is exactly why I picked this up and it did end up being such a silly and cute little book! My mid rating, though, comes from: 1. While enjoyable, the story didn’t have a ton of substance and 2. There were two instances where the authors used the r-word and that’s just a big no for me (this book did come out in 2015 but still - no.)

[Autmn Reader]

Dnf @181

Udahlah, cerita format bginian emang nggak cocok buatku. Yah, Illuminae sih pngecualian, ya. Kwwk

Tapi ya inituh nggak ada yg spesial aja aku ngerasanya. Plot-nya nggak menarik, pembawaan chat-nya juga bukan yg page turning gitu, tokohnya juga nggak ada yang spesial. Yah, intinya bukan my cup of tea aja, sih.

[Sara Bauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun, easy, ACCURATE read. Love at its best ... and most obsessive. Should probably be required reading for all college students, male and female alike, to show how crazy we all are--and how to learn from other couples' mistakes.

[Rezza Dwi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tipe buku yang bisa dibaca kilat. Cepet abis. Yakin deh palingan 1 jam tamat.

Formatnya cuma dalam bentuk email dan kolom chatting. Isinya lumayaaaan. Hubungan realistis :")

Agak ganggu terjemahanya, tapi masih bisa dibaca sih.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read Bottom Up is a modern day romance; boy and girl meet, and much of their relationship takes place in emails and text messages. The authors wrote in the Authors' Note that they wanted to see a more realistic modern dating experience in a novel. So they wrote it.

But they added a twist. Neel and Skye each wrote as their corresponding character- Elliot, a hip restaurant owner who just went through a bad breakup, and Madeline, who works for a publisher marketing cookbooks and searching for a real, fulfilling relationship. There are two other characters in the book- Elliot's best friend David, and Madeline's best friend Emily, an elementary school teacher.

Neel wrote his character's emails and text messages to Madeline and David and Skye wrote Madeline's emails and text messages to Elliot and Emily. The twist is that Neel never saw Madeline's correspondence to Emily and Skye never saw Elliot's correspondence to David until the novel was finished.

It's a clever concept and one that works beautifully, giving the novel a realistic feeling. Even though I am older than the target market for this book, I loved it. It's a Sex and the City for this generation, where every piece of their life could be played out on social media for all to parse and ponder.

Elliot is witty and charming, and maybe just a little bit flaky. When Madeline arrives at their second date, she finds an entire table filled with Elliot's friends, and she hardly speaks to Elliot all night. What does this mean? She turns to Emily for advice.

They have been dating for awhile, sleeping at each other's apartments, spending most of their time together, when Elliot informs her that he will be spending an entire week in Vermont at the wedding festivities of a college buddy. (I guess that's how it works today, weddings are a weeklong process.)

Elliot doesn't ask Madeline to accompany him, and while trolling on Elliot's friends' Instagram accounts, she sees that Elliot's ex-girlfriend is also at the wedding. What does this mean? Again, she turns to Emily.

Elliot spends much time sharing his thoughts about Madeline with David. There are times when he doesn't understand why Madeline is angry with him, and he wonders if they are truly compatible.

Read Bottom Up is a fun, quick, addictive read. You feel like you know these characters, and for a minute I expect to see them turn up somewhere on my Facebook news feed. There is a real twist at the end of the story, one I did not see coming, but enjoyed immensely.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! Easily readable in an afternoon, or 2 days worth of commutes and work breaks if you read in 15 minute intervals 4 times a day like I tend to.

Read Bottom Up follows the romantic relationship of Elliot and Madeline through 8 months of text and emails between the two of them, but also the texts and emails between M and her friend Emily and E and is his friend Daniel.

I'm such a fan of epistolary novels. Especially modern ones like this. It perfectly satisfies that voyeuristic urge. This felt like a very realistic snapshot (another thing I like stories to be. I don't need a whole life of a character if you can give me a really solid slice of a world) of current mid/late-twenty-somethings and the way we communicate. It's taking the very current feeling, if slightly neurotic view, that we see of relationships and friendships in the city on tv shows like Girls or Broad City and putting it an a more believable context of textual communication (people on tv shows call each other way too much). I think the realism and believability in stories like this comes from having no narrator. No internal monologues. You get it all from what they're saying, or not saying, to their friends and to each other.

It manages to feel like it's taking place right now without relying on pop culture references and also nicely touches on the differences between male and female friendships. It's sweet and cute at times but definitely making a point of feeling like a romantic comedy in tone but being more of a The Last Five Years kind of story. It quiet clearly eschews the idea of happily ever after that we're usually sold in stories and aims to represent how life really tends to be instead.

[Nike Andaru · Rating 2 out of 5]

113 - 2018

Tadinya tertarik baca ini karena cara penceritaan dalam buku ini yang unik, karena diceritakan dengan potongan-potongan email antara Elliot-Madeline, Elliot-David, Madeline - Emily. Jadi pembaca kayak jadi orang kepo yang ngebaca email-email orang gitu. Plus pesan teks alias sms dari keempat orang itu. Rasanya gimana? Gak ada yang spesial, gak ada yang menarik malah dari obrolan mereka.

Elliot ketemu Madeline, lalu sering email-an trus suka pacaran trus sering curhat sama temen via email juga. Hari gini masih gitu orang curhat pake email? Yang ada chat aja gitu di aplikasi pesan singkat. Sungguh membacanya biasa aja gitu, walau udah dikemas unik begitu.

Belum lagi terjemahannya yang menurut saya kurang pas, jadi membacanya kurang asyik gitu deh. Walau begitu, cara bercerita yang unik ini lumayan bisa diapresiasi dengan bintang 2 saja.

[CoffeeTimeRomance andMore · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is told in a series of emails and texts with literally no additional character development. The result is a bizarre two-dimensional look into modern dating and relationships that will leave readers clawing at the pages for more and simultaneously scratching their heads. I will warn you though, the end is absolutely nothing you would expect and probably more true to life than anything else you will read all year.
Kaitlin
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance & More

Official Review @ Coffee Time Romance & More

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read Bottom Up offers a fun and realistic look at love, friendship, and communication in the time of now. It is a smooth read, it's relatable, and you're likely to chuckle aloud. And if you can't relate to these characters, you'll know people who can and you'll rec it quickly.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an easy and quick read. Very relatable and entertaining!

[Lindsey Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lowered my rating for the absolutely unnecessary use of the word "retarded" a couple times.

[Morgan Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

I usually hate stories that are written entirely in letters/emails/texts (with the exception of the charming Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society). But I loved this!

This is one of the only letter-style books I’ve read where the letters (in this case emails and texts) actually sound realistic, like the way a real person would talk (albeit they did use proper spelling and punctuation, so… half realistic?).

There’s only so many stars you can give something like this (and maybe 4 is a stretch) because the narrative form itself limits character development, completely removes setting and description, and makes even minor details like a person’s occupation or appearance turn into an awkward expository detail shoved into conversation. There’s also the dated element of email, assumingly used for formatting reasons… who emails their friends instead of texting them, let alone with their WORK EMAIL?

That being said, I found the banter charming and the storyline cute and actually realistic — there’s no perfect fairytale rom com protagonist here. Also, can I just say… screw the Bechdel test (which this would not have passed) — women confiding in each other about how much men suck is REALISM (just as much as men complaining to each other about how women are confusing)!

[Pauline Destinugrainy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Satu lagi novel dengan konsep unik, yaitu dengan email dan pesan teks (sms).
Jadi, Eliott dan Madeline bertemu di satu kesempatan dan sepertinya mereka saling menyukai. Eliott baru saja putus dari pacarnya, dan Madeline terlihat menarik baginya. Maka mulailah Eliott mengirimkan email kepada Madeline (dia tidak punya no kontak Madeline, hanya email saja), sambil "mengkonsultasikan" pendekatannya ini dengan temannya, David. Di sisi lain, Madeline juga selalu menceritakan proses hubungannya dengan Eliott kepada Emily sahabatnya.

Read bottom up, secara harafiah diterjemahkan baca dari bawah ke atas, mengacu pada email-email Eliott yang diteruskan oleh Madeline kepada Emily sebelum memulai diskusi atau meminta pendapat Emily. Pembaca "hanya" bisa mengetahui apa yang terjadi antara Eliott dan Madeline lewat email atau pesan-pesan mereka..Selebihnya pembaca dibebaskan untuk mereka-reka apa yang terjadi. Bahkan ketika twist di akhir cerita dilemparkan, menyisakan tanda tanya pada keempat tokoh dalam novel ini. Pembaca dilepas untuk membuat kesimpulan sendiri.

Well... untuk model bercerita yang unik ini, cukup layak untuk mendapat 3 bintang.

[Weaver Of Books · Rating 1 out of 5]

Madeline and Elliot meet at a New York City restaurant opening. Flirtation online ensues. A romance, potentially eternal, possibly doomed, begins. Meanwhile, their exchanges are available to be scrutinized and interpreted by well-intentioned friends who are a mere click away.
OH NO… The part above isn’t mine. Mine is WHAT THE HELL IS THIS BOOK ? IS IT EVEN A BOOK ?
I’m gonna be cruel on this. Excuse me then. It’s shit. Like shit shit. I would never write a book if I knew It would be in email and text form. I didn’t even get the story. All I felt is LOVE IN THE AIR, but i couldn’t see it. Each text, each email, in each page, I HAD TO LOOK FOR THE SENDER. I HAD TO KNOW WHO’S SPEAKING. I HAD TO LOOK FOR THE EMOTIONS. The story could work in a normal book, I mean a normal paragraphs chapters parts book. I know I’ll regret this much, and maybe won’t even keep it, BUT IM QUITING ROMANCES ONCE AND FOR ALL (a month maybe :p). AND IT IS DEFINITELY MY WORST 2019 AND LATER YEARS READING.
And it's a 0 star rating.

[Xiomara S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The differing viewpoints in the novel brought a great sense of humor and emotion to the story. The conversations between Madeline and Emily have the exact same banter and honesty I have with my friends and I appreciated the format the authors used to convey that. SPOILER!!! I had a hard time swallowing the ending because I was expecting everything to work out, It's a book, they have sweet and tidy ending, but this one didn't. I was honestly really upset about it until my friend who had recommended it to me shared her thoughts to the effect of "he doesn't deserve her just because you think they should be together. They're both better off this way". So, I would absolutely recommend this book to anybody!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel was conceived as a project in which two writer friends- a man and a woman - would write the 21st-Century version of an “epistolary” novel by relating the whole story of a relationship in emails. The brilliant part: the authors didn’t plan or discuss with each other what each character would say or do beyond the first few exchanges, and each writer improvised a response to the other’s emails as they came in. In an interview I read, the authors talked about how they each got just as pissed when the other did or said something obnoxious as they would IRL and just as excited when they got mail. It may sound gimmicky but it really worked and was thoroughly enjoyable.

[Chloe · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very cute modern epistolary novel. It's deeply reassuring to know that EVERYONE shares their dating conversations with their closest friends, you know? Brings to mind all the photos I've forwarded and messages I've screen-shot. I read through it in almost one sitting (I took a break on my commute home) - it's a quick, fun read.