The Twitter Diaries: 2 Cities, 1 Friendship, 140 Characters is a book by Georgie Thompson and Imogen Lloyd Webber that follows a year im the life of Tuesday and Stella. The twist of this is that almost the entire book is told through a series of twitter direct messages (DMs)! The epilogue and prologue are the only portions of this book written like a “normal” book.
It was quite an interesting approach at telling a story and I think that it told the story quite well. (And made me say “Why didn’t I think of that!?” a few times.) I didn’t feel like I was missing out on any aspect of the story due to how the story was being told, it seemed more like I was “creeping” on someone’s private conversation. (Which I guess in a way I was, but they are fictional characters so I don’t feel too bad about it!)
The only “down side” to the book was that the list of players in the book was at the end. Easy to flip back and forth to see who is who if you have the print copy in your hand, not so easy to do with an e-book. Though you do tend to figure out who is who from context clues as well. (While it was mentioned in the table of contents, it didn’t dawn on me at the time what the section titled “Characters” actually was.)
You can follow Georgie and Imogen (the authors) on twitter @OfficiallyGT and @ILloydWebber and you can also follow the main characters of the story, Stella and Tuesday at their twitter handles: @StellaCabill and @TuesdayFields.
The Twitter Diaries was released May 21, 2012 and should be available at all your favorite book buying hot spots!
I received a free e-copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.
About the Book
The Twitter Diaries tells the story of pen pals for the 21st century. Two parallel lives separated by an ocean but united over a social network.
Tuesday (@Tuesday Fields), a sports reporter and Stella (@StellaCavill), a men’s shoe designer, are Brit 30-somethings who are introduced in NYC on NYE by a mutual friend, a notorious transatlantic TV presenter. They strike up an instant bond.
Over the next 365 days, and put the world to rights, one tweet at a time. From Melbourne to Monaco to Magaluf, the girls flirt and fall out with sportsmen, movie stars… and TV presenters. And then there’s their mothers…
December 31st of the same year and and meet again, for the first time since the last time. A lot can happen in a year. It turns out just 140 characters can change everything.
The Twitter Diaries is an instantly recognisable yet fictitious tale all generations can relate to, whether they are one of the world’s 140 million and counting transfixed Twitter users or not. Accessible, funny and heart-warming, it’s this summer’s must read.
Georgie Thompson lives in London where she is one of the female faces and voices of Sky Sports on British television. She is currently travelling the globe presenting Sky Sports F1 coverage. Previously she hosted Sky Sports News, anchoring the flagship programmes Afternoon Report and Evening Update from 3-7pm Tuesday to Friday. She is also a regular panellist alongside Freddie Flintoff, Jamie Redknapp and John Bishop on Sky 1’s A League Of Their Own, presented by James Corden. A mixture of sports and comedy the show is in its fifth series. Her other roles with Sky Sports have seen her host the A1 Grand Prix motor racing series, US Open tennis, Speedway World Cup and other live outside broadcasts including The Goodwood Festival of Speed, Superset Tennis, Race of Champions at Wembley and The Ryder Cup. Georgie has written for a range of publications including The Times and a column for The Sunday Mirror. Having succumbed to the lure of Twitter last year she currently has a follower count of 500,000.
Imogen Lloyd Webber lives in NYC where she is an on air political contributor for MSNBC, featuring on The Dylan Ratigan Show and across the network. Prior to this she was a “liberal” pundit for the Fox News and Fox Business Networks, appearing on programmes including The O’Reilly Factor, Hannity, and Imus. Educated at Cambridge University, where she majored in history and was labeled a “petite polymath” by the New York Post, Imogen has also been a special correspondent for EXTRA and a recurrent contributor on HLN’s Showbiz Tonight. Other US radio and TV appearances include Access Hollywood, Good Morning America, The Morning Show (Fox), and assorted shows across the Sirius radio network. Imogen is the author of the non-fiction The Single Girl’s Guide, which has been published worldwide including the UK, US, China, Italy, Germany, Australia, and Russia. The Guide has recently been optioned by the producer Lloyd Levin (United 93, The Watchmen, Boogie Nights) and Imogen is currently adapting it for him into a screenplay. Imogen’s freelance writing has been for publications as diverse asThe Financial Times, The Sunday Times, The Daily Mail, The Huffington Post, Jane, and Scarlet magazine. She also produced the play Touched… For The Very First Time, starring Sadie Frost, which had an acclaimed run in London’s West End in 2009. She doesn’t have as many Twitter followers as Georgie but she can dream.