The Animators

It spends some time laying out the groundwork, fashions the requisite meet-cute at a prestigious college between two talented misfits and then jumps ahead 10 years. Two female animators working through the creative process and exploring ideas of love, friendship, addiction, success, family, who owns stories and who gets to tell them. From there it's a full blown soap opera with dramatic turns, unexpected reveals and mounting tensions. Whitaker throws it all on the page but it's entirely readable and she's got an ear for voice. I love Mel and Sharon and the tumultuous creative journey they're on. Rollicking yet assured it was a hell of a read.