The Devil Wears Prada

JJJJ

My View:   This novel about the ultimate boss from you-know-where makes for an obvious bestseller list candidate. It makes us feel better about our own lives, and gives us a character we can relate to when we feel down. The novel follows Andy as she attempts to cope with "the job a million girls would die for" for one full year, as she wedges into the fashion world, and as she attempts to handle her slowly suffocating personal life. The sense of a regulated timeline is strangely convoluted, jumping past some parts of the year and dragging out others, leaving you wondering about what crazy Miranda demands we miss out on hearing. The relationship Andy and Lily have is strange, but intriguing, and their flaws make a realistic book. Although the ending is not completely satisfying, and seems abrupt,* I'm basing that off of my expectation for a happily-ever-after ending such as that in the movie. Overall, an interesting and mildly funny read that I wouldn't mind revisiting (summer 2014 update: I'm now attempting this in French). Although Weisenberger is a decent writer, her main lacking point is that she doesn't know how to create a cohesive storyline and suspense. I don't really care what Miranda's going to do next or what is going to happen to Andy while I read. I pick the book up when I have a minute, but I don't read it because I just can't put it down.

*Sort of similar to Twilight's. It's a lot of drawn-out complaining with little tiny issues all the way, but by the time you get to the major plot point, you get about 50 pages about it and then it's over. So the narrator signs off hastily with a very brief "but everything's good now, I learned from it, hehe." Unsatisfying.

Wikipedia Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Devil_Wears_Prada_(novel)

Link: http://www.randomhouse.com/features/devilwearsprada/

General Information:

Method of Reading:	Personally owned paperback novel, 360 pages
Dates of Reading:	August 21, 2009-August 27, 2009
Author:	Lauren Weisberger
Publication Year:	2003
Recommended To:	*LANGUAGE ALERT* There were many excellent opportunities for Lauren Weisberger to clean up her language, and I only saw one where she actually took that chance and said "garbage" instead of… another word. I'd recommend the book, on the whole, to high school freshman at the earliest. Being a HS sophomore, I thought I was the perfect age to read and enjoy it, but I'll probably appreciate it more after actually having had a job.
Quotes:	"'Oh, Mimi, so sorry! The new girl thought you were Miranda! I know, how funny. I guess we have to work on not thinking every British accent is necessarily our boss!" (43).
Movie?	Of course. The movie stars Meryl Streep as Miranda and Anne Hathaway as Andy. I saw the movie before reading the book (Dad always told me: "It's a documentary. This is what life at [insert client company here] is.") and I personally like both. They are so wildly different (the movie really strays from the books) that it's tough to compare them, but I like both just in different ways, and I respect each as a completely different story.

Always,
Your Bibliomaniac

Bibliographic info:
Weisberger, Lauren. The Devil Wears Prada. New York: Doubleday, 2003. Print.