Noble, Elizabeth 1968–

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Noble, Elizabeth 1968–

(Elizabeth M. Noble)

PERSONAL:

Born December 22, 1968, in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England; married David Young (an executive), 1996; children: two daughters, eldest named Tallulah. Education: St. Edmund Hall, Oxford University, B.A. (honors), 1990; also earned an Intensive Secretarial diploma.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Wonersh, Guildford, Surrey, England; New York, NY. Agent—Emma Parry, Fletcher & Parry, 78 Fifth Ave., 3rd Fl., New York, NY 10011; Jonathan Lloyd, Curtis Brown, Haymarket House, 28-29 Haymarket, London SW1Y 4SP, England. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer. Worked in publishing for several years, including for Hodder & Stoughton, Scholastic, HarperCollins, and Reed Elsevier.

WRITINGS:

The Reading Group, Perennial (New York, NY), 2005.

The Tenko Club, Hodder & Stoughton (London, England), 2005, published as The Friendship Test: A Novel, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2006.

The Alphabet Weekends: Love on the Road from A to Z, HarperCollins (New York, NY), 2006.

Things I Want My Daughters to Know, William Morrow (New York, NY), 2008.

ADAPTATIONS:

The Reading Group has been optioned for film by Fox Television. Author of the Elizabeth Noble blog.

SIDELIGHTS:

Elizabeth Noble worked in publishing for several years before getting married, having children, and then deciding to try her hand at writing a novel. Her debut, The Reading Group, became a best seller in England. It is about five women who get together to start a book group. "Because of my background, I knew that I was writing into the most crowded genre, women's mass-market fiction, and that the book needed a hook," Noble said in an interview for Bookseller. "The idea of a reading group came like a light bulb over my head … and I couldn't believe no one else had done it."

The novel tells the story of the growing bond between the women and how the books they choose to read both reflect and affect their lives. Each chapter is told within the framework of the group's book choice and opens with the group meeting. The intertwining stories involve love, family, depression, and adultery. Writing in Booklist, Whitney Scott called the novel an "entertaining read" and "very accessible for Americans." She also noted: "Noble keeps engagement high as her characters connect and interconnect." A Publishers Weekly contributor commended the author for handling the many interlocking plots and points of view, adding: "Light but never flip, this is funny, contemplative and touching reading." Amy Brozio-Andrew similarly wrote in her Library Journal review: "Fast paced and funny, this is women's fiction worth staying up past your bedtime for."

Noble's The Friendship Test: A Novel is the story of four girls who become friends during their first year at Oxford University, but whose friendships face a series of tests two decades on when a number of personal crises force them to either band together or walk away. Booklist reviewer Beth Leistensnider noted that the voice of the one American-born friend is occasionally off but that, overall, "the dialogue rings true, and the human drama will appeal to readers of high-end chick lit." Kim Dare, writing for the School Library Journal, dubbed Noble "a graceful and stylish writer with the ability to blend the humor and complexities of everyday friendships." A critic for Publishers Weekly called the novel "compulsively readable."

In The Alphabet Weekends: Love on the Road from A to Z, newly dumped Natalie goes out for New Year's Eve with her longtime friend Tom. Tom argues that she should give up on the typical men she has been dating and fall for him instead. He proposes taking her on twenty-six dates, one for each letter of the alphabet, with the letter setting the theme for their outing, the idea being that these dates will give her the chance to see him in a new light and perhaps to fall in love with him. The dates include things such as a hotel (H), Paris (P), and Las Vegas (V), the last of which is the romantic getaway that convinces Natalie they are meant for each other. A Kirkus Reviews contributor called the book "slick, skillful, predictable."

Noble's fourth novel, Things I Want My Daughters to Know, is the story of four sisters, ranging in age from mid-thirties to teen years, who are on the verge of losing their mother, Barbara. Knowing her death is near, Barbara writes letters to each of the young women, hoping that through her written words, she can help them continue to grow even after she is gone. The sisters, who at the beginning of the book are not close, learn to lean on each other for support.

In an interview with Barnes and Noble Online, Noble gave the following advice to aspiring writers: "My main message of advice would be to keep writing so long as you enjoy doing it, and to remain true to yourself—you cannot write by committee."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, January 1, 2005, Whitney Scott, review of The Reading Group, p. 821; December 1, 2005, Beth Leistensnider, review of The Friendship Test: A Novel, p. 26; December 1, 2005, Beth Leistensnider, review of The Friendship Test, p. 26.

Bookseller, January 30, 2004, "Noble Debut for Reading Group," p. 15; August 27, 2004, "Homing Instincts: Elizabeth Noble Reached Number One with Her Debut ‘The Reading Group’"; November 18, 2005, "Top Title," p. 40; November 2, 2007, Benedicte Page, "New Titles," p. 29.

Book World, April 15, 2007, Claudia Deeane, review of The Alphabet Weekends: Love on the Road from A to Z, p. 11.

Daily Variety, May 25, 2006, Steven Zeitchik, "Fox Builds Bookshelf with Sibling," p. 1.

Entertainment Weekly, January 28, 2005, Clarissa Cruz and Leah Greenblatt, review of The Reading Group, p. 87; January 13, 2006, Clarissa Cruz and Leah Greenblatt, review of The Friendship Test, p. 83; January 26, 2007, Jennifer Armstrong, review of The Alphabet Weekends, p. 75.

Kirkus Reviews, November 15, 2004, review of The Reading Group, p. 1064; December 1, 2006, review of The Alphabet Weekends, p. 1194; December 1, 2005, review of The Friendship Test, p. 1251; December 1, 2006, review of The Alphabet Weekends, p. 1194.

Library Journal, January 1, 2005, Amy Brozio-Andrew, review of The Reading Group, p. 99; October 15, 2005, Joanna M. Burkhardt, audiobook review of The Reading Group, p. 91; December 1, 2005, Amy Brozio-Andrews, review of The Friendship Test, p. 114.

Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH), April 30, 2006, Marci Pelzer, review of The Friendship Test, p. L2.

Publishers Weekly, June 28, 2004, John F. Baker, "A New Novel by Elizabeth Noble," p. 10; November 15, 2004, review of The Reading Group, p. 38; October 31, 2005, review of The Friendship Test, p. 31.

School Library Journal, March 1, 2006, Kim Dare, review of The Friendship Test, p. 255.

Sun (London, England), January 13, 2006, review of The Alphabet Weekends, p. 60.