Don't You Forget About Me
Jancee Dunn

Reviewed by Cynthia Murphy

Have you ever wanted to go back to high school?  Was high school as wonderful as you think?  Jancee Dunn’s Don’t You Forget About Me deals with both of these questions.  This witty and hilarious novel tells the story of Lillian Curtis.  Lillian is a recent divorcee who returns to her parents’ suburban New Jersey home for a temporary stay.  Her twenty-year high school reunion coincides with this move.  As she lives in her childhood bedroom, which has “remained as carefully preserved as Graceland”, Lillian slips back into high school mode. 

It seems amazingly easy for Lillian to revert to her old habits.  Of course, she is living in a room that has not changed since 1988.  She begins driving like a teenager, dating her high school boyfriend, Christian Somers, and hanging out at some of her old haunts.  She reconnects with Dawn, a friend that she betrayed in school.  Unlike Lillian, Dawn has moved on with her life.  She is a happily married suburban mother.  At the reunion, Lillian once again ditches Dawn in favor of the “cool kids.”  Sadly, when Lillian wins the “Least Changed” award at the reunion, she doesn’t even realize that it is a somewhat dubious distinction.  With the help of her boss and her older sister, Lillian does eventually see the light and join the twenty-first century.

Don’t You Forget About Me provides a funny, wistful look at what happens when one unhappy woman has the chance to reclaim a bit of her youth.  Unfortunately, Lillian romanticizes her high school days so much that she creates her own warped blend of memories.  Dunn does a wonderful job of capturing that little bit of longing that everyone feels about some part of her past- whether it’s a certain time period, an old love, or a major event.  The feelings that Dunn captures are universal.

Dunn has a wonderfully quirky heroine in Lillian.  No matter how out of touch with reality she gets, she is still very likeable.  Lillian works as a producer for the talk show of Vi Barbour, a lively senior citizen. She loves old musicals and hanging out with her boss.  Her many quirks are charming, but they allow her to disconnect from the real world.  Lillian’s eccentricities form a very important part of her character.  She sees the world from a slightly different perspective, and that view leads to many of her problems.  Lillian is also quick to retreat into her own cozy world, filled with old musicals and altered memories of high school.  Her rapid descent into her high school self provides both funny and sad moments.

I don’t get to say this often, but this book has a rockin’ soundtrack.  The title is taken from a classic ‘ 80s hit.  There are so many pop music references throughout the book that I felt like I had a Greatest Hits of the ‘80s collection playing somewhere in the background the entire time.  I still can’t get “Jessie’s Girl” out of my head.  Dunn captures the pop culture of the 1980s without all the kitsch.  Be prepared for numerous references to Duran Duran, Rick Springfield, and Molly Ringwald.  Even the cover captures the ‘80s vibe.  It depicts the classic mix tape in bright colors with heart made from the tape.  It is a perfect ‘80s look.  The typefaces offer the only modern touches.

Don’t You Forget About Me is a funny and fabulous look at one woman’s brief return to her high school self.  It is both funny and poignant with solid character development to make it a serious novel.  It is a great book for fans of the 1980s.  It is also makes you wonder if you would slip back into high school mode under the right circumstances.  Jancee Dunn has written a witty and wistful novel that is both enjoyable and thought-provoking.