The basic idea of the book was excellent, BUT, there are so many digressions that, well, I skipped so many that I lost count. The various love lives did not add to the story; they were MAJOR distractions. The near constant use of the "F": word got to be very annoying; didn't contribute to the understanding of the book. Some descriptions of Julia's work were very good but some were not. I may finish the book but only if many sections are skipped