Story for the Week
If you were anywhere near a radio in 1990, you probably know “Hold On,” Wilson Phillips’ debut single and the first of four number one hits for the group. Known for their perfect harmonies, the women of Wilson Phillips come from other famous musical families. Carnie and Wendy Wilson are the daughters of The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson, and Chynna Phillips descends from John and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas & the Papas.
I’ve been bombarded recently by TikTok videos saying that every Gen X woman will break into song if they hear it. The lyrics, the harmonies…truth be told, this Gen X woman totally would sing “Hold On” anytime. 🎵 “Someday, somebody’s gonna make you wanna turn around and say goodbye / Until then, baby, are you gonna let them hold you down and make you cry? / Don’t you know? / Don’t you know, things can change? / Things’ll go your way / If you hold on for one more day / Can you hold on for one more day? / Things’ll go your way / Hold on for one more day” 🎶
I’m a sucker for a good ballad…always have been. Elton John, Billy Joel, Phil Collins, REO Speedwagon, Journey, Fleetwood Mac, Donny Osmond 🥰. I could go on. There’s a long list. I listened to the Elton John station on my Alexa recently and pretty much knew every song.
Don’t get me wrong. I love a good toe-tapper, songs with a great beat to help with housework. But a good ballad, something that makes me feel good, something I can relate to…those are the songs I’m going to learn all the lyrics to and play on repeat now that repeat is a thing.
Those songs also make their way into movies, tug at our heartstrings, set the mood for the best scenes. Just recently, I watched Notting Hill for the umpteeth time. The movie features “When You Say Nothing At All,” a song by Irish singer/songwriter Ronan Keeting that I have loved since I saw the movie the very first time. It’s one of the few songs I bought on a cassette single. I still remembered all the lyrics when I watched the movie.
🎵 “It’s amazing how you can speak right to my heart / Without saying a word, you can light up the dark / Try as I may I can never explain / What I hear when you don’t say a thing / The smile on your face lets me know that you need me / There’s a truth in your eyes saying you’ll never leave me / The touch of your hand says you’ll catch me wherever I fall / You say it best when you say nothing at all” 🎶
Honestly, get me on a ballad tangent and I could go on and on. There are literally decades of ballads in my brain. I can get up from my desk and walk into the kitchen and forget why I got up in the first place, but I can remember all the lyrics to “Tiny Dancer,” “Piano Man,” “The Chain.” The list goes on. Seriously…don’t get me started.
The book below reminded me immediately of Wilson Phillips and even references them and a number of artists of the early 2000s as a part of the story. I think you’ll enjoy it…even if you’re not a Gen Xer.
Book Review
⭐⭐⭐⭐
4 Stars for The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits by Jennifer Weiner
384 pages
Publisher: William Morrow
Publication Date: April 8, 2025
I received an advance copy of this title from NetGalley and William Morrow.
Publisher’s Description
Cassie and Zoe Grossberg were thrust into the spotlight as The Griffin Sisters, a pop duo that defined the aughts. Together, they skyrocketed to the top, gracing MTV, SNL, and the cover of Rolling Stone. Cassie, a musical genius who never felt at ease in her own skin, preferred to stay in the shadows. Zoe, full of confidence and craving fame, lived for the stage. But fame has a price, and after one turbulent year, the band abruptly broke up.
Now, two decades later, the sisters couldn’t be further apart. Zoe is a suburban mom warning her daughter Cherry to avoid the spotlight, while Cassie has disappeared from public life entirely. But when Cherry begins unearthing the truth behind their breathtaking rise and infamous breakup, long-buried secrets surface, forcing all three women to confront their choices, their desires, and their complicated bonds.
************
Main Characters:
- Zoe Rohrbach – stay-at-home mom to two boys with her husband Jordan and her daughter Cherry, defends her creepy stepson Bix because he lost his mother when he was young, stays active with the PTA, never talks about The Griffin Sisters and gets uncomfortable when people recognize her
- Cassie Grossberg – painfully introverted and private, musical prodigy, dropped out of the public eye after The Griffin Sisters’ first album and tour, bought land in Alaska and rents out cabins to earn an income, doesn’t go online, doesn’t tell anyone who she is, only the band’s former manager and her Aunt Bess have her phone number
- Cherry Rohrbach – Zoe’s 18-year-old daughter who wants to pursue a career in music against Zoe’s wishes, selected as a semifinalist on the reality show The Next Stage, takes off for Los Angeles as the book begins when she is supposed to be at school
- Russell D’Angelo – founder of the former band Sky King, tapped to be the lead guitarist and songwriter with Cassie for The Griffin Sisters
- Tommy Kelleher – drummer for The Griffin Sisters, also a musical prodigy, attended a music academy with Cassie, has always had a crush on Zoe
- Cameron Gratz – bass player for The Griffin Sisters
My first experience with Jennifer Weiner won’t be my last. There was a lot to love about this book for a Gen Xer like myself—a pop duo skyrockets to fame, MTV, Saturday Night Live, Rolling Stone. But as much as this story is about The Griffin Sisters’ meteoric rise in music in the early 2000s, the bigger piece showcases the relationship between Zoe and Cassie Grossberg.
Born less than a year apart, Zoe and Cassie grew up in a low-income home in South Philadelphia. Outgoing, attractive, popular Zoe looked out for her painfully introverted, overweight, and outcast sister Cassie. While Zoe desired fame, Cassie wanted the complete opposite. Cassie was a musical prodigy, but she could only bring herself to sing with her sister. When they get discovered at a school talent show, their meteoric rise to fame is everything Zoe ever wanted, until….
A year later, after one successful album and tour, the band breaks up and the sisters live on opposite sides of the country. Zoe tries to make it as a solo artist and eventually marries, supporting her family as a stay-at-home mom. Cassie lives completely out of the public eye in rural Alaska. Zoe’s daughter Cherry, on the other hand, doesn’t understand why Zoe won’t talk about her time in The Griffin Sisters and wants the same fame her mother had.
The story unfolds in multiple timelines from multiple perspectives—Cherry in the present day as well as Zoe and Cassie in the present day and 20 years before. I immediately felt pulled into this story. Cherry is desperate to make it big and doesn’t understand why her mother discourages her dream of being a star. Both Zoe and Cassie feel they are to blame for their current circumstances, and neither of them talks about their time in the spotlight.
I loved the author’s style in telling this story. There’s nothing unusual about dual timelines in novels. What I did find unusual was how the author seamlessly continued a story from one point of view to another. Where Zoe would start telling one piece of the story, Cassie would continue, and then Zoe would pick up again. This was most effective when we learn about the band’s demise with Cassie talking to one person and Zoe talking to another about one specific night in Detroit. It made it easy to see how each of them blamed themselves.
There is a pretty big focus in this novel on Cassie’s weight and appearance. I have learned since reading this that the author always has a main character of size, which I find commendable. There were references in this story about the treatment of women who are viewed as less-than-perfect, and there was a specific reference to the very real scenario of Carnie Wilson’s appearance on The Howard Stern Show in 1999.
This is a real issue in the entertainment world and was even more prevalent 20 years ago. That said, it felt like overkill here. Zoe regularly expressed jealousy of Cassie for having the talent she felt she deserved to go along with her looks. Cassie constantly referred to her weight and her looks. Overweight people know they’re overweight. They don’t think about it constantly.
I grew up loving the music of the ’80s and ’90s, even into the 2000s, so there were plenty of references to make me nostalgic. Sometimes the reason we love a book is that is resonates with us. We can identify with the characters. It makes us feel good at the end. All of these things are true for The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits. I’ll be adding Jennifer Weiner to the list of authors I’ll look for in the future.
If you enjoyed this post, please comment below. Subscribe for regular updates, and share it with your friends. If you’re interested in starting a conversation, send an email to booksundertheblanket@gmail.com.
As an Amazon affiliate, I earn a small commission at no cost to you when you make a purchase using the links on my site.
