artsApr 18, 20238:50pending

In 'Romantic Comedy,' Curtis Sittenfeld flips the gendered tropes

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From Notting Hill to the real-life relationships of several SNL writers with Hollywood starlets – to even the new Barbie movie tagline ("She's everything. He's just Ken.") – there's a recurring storyline in pop culture of ordinary guys dating up, falling in love with glamorous women who are seemingly out of their league. In her new book, Romantic Comedy, Curtis Sittenfeld shakes up these gender dynamics. She tells NPR's Juana Summers why she wanted her career-focused heroine – a comedy writer – to stumble into a romance with a global pop star.

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In 'Romantic Comedy,' Curtis Sittenfeld flips the gendered tropes

About this episode

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