Dear Girls Above Me

July 1, 2013
McDowell tells the story behind his popular twitter feed where he shares the inane conversations he overhears from the two vapid "Kardashian wannabes" that live in the apartment upstairs. He includes hilarious examples of their dialogue including thoughts on Suri Cruise's outfits, friendship, dating, and The Real Housewives of New Jersey. The heart of this memoir, however, is McDowell's recovery from a devastating breakup and how the girls unwittingly help and occasionally hinder him. Their voices are his constant companion in a time of loneliness but their frank discussions of duping men make him paranoid. As McDowell starts dating again, the girls chatter goes from "nuisance to crucial" but he suffers a setback when his date catches him buying condoms right before picking her up. McDowell also covers his "super-fabulous" roommate Pat as well as events from his childhood like accidentally stumbling upon his mother, actress Mary Steenburgen, (his father is British actor Malcom McDowell, best known for his role in A Clockwork Orange) in a nude scene on a televised broadcast of Melvin and Howard. The final act contains an unbelievably apt and funny metaphor that alone makes this book worth reading. Anyone familiar with heartbreak will find themselves cheering McDowell on through his journey, but you might find yourself surprised to be rooting for the girls upstairs as well.