Web MasterMirabelle is a twenty-something wallflower, beautiful in that forgettable kind of way, and mysterious in that quiet kind of way. She’s not very interesting. An artist at heart, Mirabelle works the glove counter at Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills, “selling things that nobody buys anymore.” Fortunately for her, wealthy 50-year-old businessman Ray Porter happens upon the glove department and begins a distant, psychological affair with her, loving Mirabelle in his mind and sleeping with her in reality. Comedian Steve Martin’s 120-page novella centers on their relationship and Mirabelle’s long-standing depression. Of course the ending is a happy one (could it be any other way for Martin?).
Martin’s prose is witty, calm and levelheaded, making keen observations on love and emotions, scattering in bitter witticisms.
His major literary fault in Shopgirl is that he simply explains too much. We know exactly where characters are, and when, what they’re feeling, and why. Those readers who like to use their imaginations (even minimally) to create a picture of a person won’t appreciate that Martin covers all his bases to excess in the novella. Perhaps, then, Martin’s fault isn’t that he isn’t a bad writer, but rather, he hasn’t yet learned the skills of crafting a scene, a person, or a story.