Preloved: A sparklingly witty and relatable debut novel

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As a regular volunteer herself, Lauren shares the secrets of the charity shop… Preloved describes the ‘Oh my God’ moments of volunteering when Gwen discovers a dildo in a bag of donations. So, what was Lauren’s most gruesome discovery? “I haven't actually had a dildo, sadly, but I know they are frequently donated… We've definitely had bondage gear, and we found something with human hair in, too… Dubious stains are a weekly occurrence.” Optimistic and engaging… intimate and joyful… We’re waiting for Preloved to be optioned by Reese Witherspoon or at least adapted into a binge-worthy Netflix series…’ Glamour Preloved has taken up residence in my heart and I will be recommending it to everyone I know. It's completely enchanting, completely captivating, completely brilliant, I adored everything about it. It has so much heart and warmth, while Gwen is so well-written and relatable. I was already a fan of Lauren Bravo's writing, and now I'm officially obsessed. Gwen is in her thirty-eight years old, newly unemployed and trying to work out what to do with her life. She decides to volunteer in her local charity shop, where she meets a lot of interesting people and encounters many interesting items. The characters are beautifully described, especially Suze, Gwen’s childhood best friend. I really liked Gwen and could understand her confidence issues. I enjoyed getting to know Gwen and seeing how she slowly gained strength and was able to take power from letting go.

Preloved by Lauren Bravo - Fantastic Fiction Preloved by Lauren Bravo - Fantastic Fiction

Then she’s let go from a job she drifted into a decade ago and never left, and Gwen realizes it’s time to make a change, starting with cleaning out her apartment. In the charity shop where she literally and metaphorically unloads her baggage, she discovers a group of weird and wonderful people devoted to finding a new home for donated items that have lost their use elsewhere. Gwen volunteers there—and finds a new home for herself among her fellow workers while discovering joy in the untold stories of secondhand things. Every character in this book, and every item that is preloved and finding its new home, has something to come to terms with, to face before they can make the next steps in their lives. Preloved is a beautiful, funny novel full of pitch perfect insight and detail. In a world of fast fashion, fast friendships and fast opinion, this is a refreshing and relatable alternative, celebrating and challenging our ideas about objects and ownership. For anyone (like me) who has ever stood behind the counter of a charity shop, it will spark particular joy. Political, delightful and very very funny." - Nell Frizzell Preloved is full of sharp observations on life, loss, regret and self-preservation... spilling over with wit and hope. Cleverly interwoven with stories of the myriad reasons items find their way into charity shops, the joy, friendship and ultimate enlightenment Gwen discovers offers a quirky and poignant reminder that one person's trash is always somebody else's treasure." - Julietta Henderson Just like that once-in-a-lifetime charity shop find, Preloved is a gleaming prize to be treasured. Lauren Bravo is witty and thoughtful in her exploration of our relationship with objects and trends, believing that – just as a pair of shoes can have many, many lives – so can the people that wear them.' Caroline O'Donohue, author of Promising Young WomanI've also worked extensively as a commercial copywriter,for the likes of LEGO, Sainsbury's, River Cottage, The Flour Station, British Gas, Betty.me, RED Valentino, BBC, Channel 4, O2 Magazineand Tesco,on web copy,social media content and digital strategy.These days I focus on working with ethical and sustainable fashion and lifestyle brands. Now it’s time for Gwen to get out of her life in pause, and to find a way to move forward with bravery and humanity—and more regular dental care. If clothes can get a second chance, why can’t we? Brimming with life, love, and the stories bound up in even the most everyday items, The Second Chance Store is a tale of friendship, loss, and dusting yourself off and starting over—a novel filled with humor and a testament to the enduring power and joy of charity shops. You have to prioritise work, family commitments, children, potentially partners, potentially ageing parents (over) friendships, and it becomes much harder. There can be a real disconnect between the friendships we imagined we would have and the friendships that we actually have.” As we watch Gwen clamber over familial relationships, potential romances and sex as well as as best friend who seems impossibly far away, Lauren believes “ Preloved is definitely a love story about friendships more than anything else.” But life also has another side for things redundant, it is repurposed. Redundant things can be repurposed and find useful and fulfilling lives. The book points out that this is how life works. One man's treasure is another man's junk. One man's ex-wife is the love of another man's life.

Lauren Bravo Contact me — Lauren Bravo

Ok, first of all, HOW DARE YOU, Lauren Bravo?!? How do you have the audacity to write something so utterly relatable and unputdownable as your debut novel? From 8am on the day I sat down intending to just read a few chapters of Preloved to 8pm that evening when I finished, I internally screamed, ‘OMG SAME!’ so many times I lost count. There is a glorious mix of characters that work alongside Gwen in the shop that help her in rediscovering life. Characters such as Nicholas who confuses Gwen as they go on a date to the National Gallery. She finds his boundless enthusiasm appealing and he seems to want to really know about her. Connie who works alongside Gwen is in her early sixties and very outspoken. She becomes a mother-figure for Gwen as she finds them spending more time together. Brimming with life, love and the stories bound up in even the most everyday items, Preloved is a tale about friendship, loss, being true to oneself no matter the expectations – and the enduring power and joy of charity shops.While all Gwen’s friends are “procreating in the countryside”, she is single, lonely and now, jobless. So she begins anew in the place where all things get a second chance: a charity shop. Preloved is a funny and touching read.’ I just hummed along with the first, rather long like 2/3's of the book, and then all of a sudden it made sense. I did like the chapters and the things that showed up at the shop what they were and how they got there. But overall I thought the book was rather melancholy and at timesin places it just rambled on. Preloved by Lauren Bravo is a captivating book that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. The main character, Gwen, is relatable and likeable, even though she has her own issues that can be frustrating at times. However, this only adds to her character's believability and realism. Although I felt like I didn't get to know her fully, her story was still enjoyable to read. Preloved is full of sharp observations on life, loss, regret and self-preservation... spilling over with wit and hope. Cleverly interwoven with stories of the myriad reasons items find their way into charity shops, the joy, friendship and ultimate enlightenment Gwen discovers offers a quirky and poignant reminder that one person's trash is always somebody else's treasure. When Gwen’s made redundant from a job she drifted into a decade ago and never left, she realises it’s time to make a change. Over what might be the best – and most solitary – meal she’s ever eaten, Gwen vows to find something meaningful to do with her life, reconnect with her family and friends – and finally book herself a dentist appointment.

Preloved by Lauren Bravo a spoiler-free book review Preloved by Lauren Bravo a spoiler-free book review

With charity shops, there’s a moral code that if you wouldn’t buy it, you shouldn’t donate it. But sometimes charity shops seem closer to bins than boutiques. It seems people lose their sense of shame when donating, but Lauren disagrees, “I think people are actually trying to retain their moral compass. Donating is potentially a way of appeasing their guilt at having bought a life full of things that are ultimately going to end up in the bin. They think, ‘If I give it to a charity shop, hopefully, they'll be able to do something with it and make some money from it.’ I think it's a way of appeasing their own conscience.” Lauren Bravo is a freelance journalist who writes about fashion, popular culture, food, travel and feminism, for titles including Grazia, Stylist, Cosmopolitan and Sunday Times Style. She volunteers in a charity shop once a week (partly to get dibs on all the best clothes).Gwene has been made redundant at her job. They did it quite nicely and gave her about 5 months of salary to find herself. She sort of rolls through life and ends up in a Second Chance Store where she fits in rather nicely. She is redundant and lands in a place with lots of redundant things. As the author of What Would The Spice Girls Do , How To Break Up With Fast Fashion , and reams of lifestyle magazine articles, Preloved by Lauren Bravo is the writer’s debut novel and TBH, we’re thrilled she’s diversified into fiction.

Lauren Bravo

From 2002 onwards I was a columnist for The Worthing Herald, which they were kind/desperate enough to let me carry on doing every week for 11 years. As she is sitting in a restaurant eating a solo dinner to celebrate her birthday (thus showing us, the readers, the isolated life she has made for herself), she starts to put together a to-do list of all the tasks she has been avoiding for far too long. One of these chores is to dispose of the engagement ring that she has been holding on to since the abrupt ending of the relationship. She takes this, and other items she has been keeping, to a local charity shop and so starts the journey to her new life. With tough issues at its core, Preloved is still intimate and joyful. While you’ll find no spoiler alerts here, there is an optimistic finish. GLAMOUR wonders, why do you think people need happy endings? Particularly when we're living among bleakness and uncertainty, it’s a privilege when somebody chooses to sit down with a book you've written and invested hours of their life with a character; you owe it to them to give that character a satisfactory ending. I've had so many experiences where I've loved a book right up until the 5% and then I want to hurl it across the room!" You just feel cheated. And I couldn't do that to readers.” The writing style is clever, observant and witty. I’m sure Lauren Bravo knows my mother, because she’s uncannily similar to Gwen’s mum Marjorie! Her character descriptions are astute and sensitive and each one comes to life from her words.Preloved also reads as a love letter to charity shops. The stories about the different people that visit and volunteer in them feel so real, like I almost expect to run into these characters next time I nip into Cancer Research or Oxfam. I’ll definitely look at these shops with even more fondness in future (and that’s saying something as I do love a charity shop).