When Andrea (Andy) Sachs takes on a job in fashion – telling herself it's only a stepping stone to her dream job at the New Yorker – she takes on more than she bargained for. Her boss, Miranda Priestly, is the most influential person in fashion, and, Andrea is convinced, the Devil incarnate. Every day, as Miranda's personal assistant, Andrea is asked to achieve the impossible, and, once she manages it, it's added to her list of daily duties.
It's said that working for Miranda for a year – and not getting fired – can guarantee you a job almost anywhere you like, and trusting in this, Andrea begins counting down the days. Her boyfriend, Alex, and her best friend Lily, and even her parents, are unable to understand how important this is to her, and how strict Miranda is. Too rushed off her feet to find time to explain, Andrea finds her relationships with everyone close to her suffering.
One area in which the novel suffers is in characterization. Miranda Priestly, the boss from hell, is a masterpiece. You really do hate her, and since that is her role in the novel, since that's the whole idea behind her existence, then it works great. But there are very few likable characters in the novel. Christian Collinsworth, who plays the role of Andy's knight in shining armour, her apple in Eden, is smarmy, arrogant, and selfish. Andy's boyfriend, Alex, is moralistic preacher figure, and although I'm sure he's a lovely person, he's not someone I'd enjoy spending time with. Andy's best friend, Lily, is equally selfish. Every character in the novel goes on and on about Andy's neglecting them, yet not one of them attempts to understand how difficult her life and her job is, or even help her hold on to her sanity for the year she needs to spend there.
The book is told in first person, and so the main character the reader gets to know is Andy herself. Andy is something of a hypocritical snob, yet manages to be the most likable character in the book. This speaks volumes.
Lauren Weisberger writes in a very gossipy style, and it's rumored that the book is a roman à clef about Vogue magazine, with the character of Miranda Priestly based on the editor of the aforementioned magazine, Anna Wintour. Although Weisberger denies that this is true, that's said to be the defining factor that propelled the book up the bestseller lists.
Perhaps not entirely unexpected in a book whose title contains the word "devil" religion is something of a subliminal theme. Andrea is Jewish, as was Miranda Priestly before she changed her name, became the editor of Runway, and stopped writing home. Andrea's Jewish friends Alex Fineman and Lily Goodwin, find themselves neglected in favour of Miranda Priestly, and Christian Collinsworth as the book progresses, as if Andrea is turning her back on everything she knows, in this case, religion, and following the same path Miranda once did.
The ending suffers, and greatly degrades the rest of the book. It's almost heavily moralistic, and very clichéd.
In summary, a fairly interesting novel, far too weighed down by its morals and unlikable characters.
It's said that working for Miranda for a year – and not getting fired – can guarantee you a job almost anywhere you like, and trusting in this, Andrea begins counting down the days. Her boyfriend, Alex, and her best friend Lily, and even her parents, are unable to understand how important this is to her, and how strict Miranda is. Too rushed off her feet to find time to explain, Andrea finds her relationships with everyone close to her suffering.
One area in which the novel suffers is in characterization. Miranda Priestly, the boss from hell, is a masterpiece. You really do hate her, and since that is her role in the novel, since that's the whole idea behind her existence, then it works great. But there are very few likable characters in the novel. Christian Collinsworth, who plays the role of Andy's knight in shining armour, her apple in Eden, is smarmy, arrogant, and selfish. Andy's boyfriend, Alex, is moralistic preacher figure, and although I'm sure he's a lovely person, he's not someone I'd enjoy spending time with. Andy's best friend, Lily, is equally selfish. Every character in the novel goes on and on about Andy's neglecting them, yet not one of them attempts to understand how difficult her life and her job is, or even help her hold on to her sanity for the year she needs to spend there.
The book is told in first person, and so the main character the reader gets to know is Andy herself. Andy is something of a hypocritical snob, yet manages to be the most likable character in the book. This speaks volumes.
Lauren Weisberger writes in a very gossipy style, and it's rumored that the book is a roman à clef about Vogue magazine, with the character of Miranda Priestly based on the editor of the aforementioned magazine, Anna Wintour. Although Weisberger denies that this is true, that's said to be the defining factor that propelled the book up the bestseller lists.
Perhaps not entirely unexpected in a book whose title contains the word "devil" religion is something of a subliminal theme. Andrea is Jewish, as was Miranda Priestly before she changed her name, became the editor of Runway, and stopped writing home. Andrea's Jewish friends Alex Fineman and Lily Goodwin, find themselves neglected in favour of Miranda Priestly, and Christian Collinsworth as the book progresses, as if Andrea is turning her back on everything she knows, in this case, religion, and following the same path Miranda once did.
The ending suffers, and greatly degrades the rest of the book. It's almost heavily moralistic, and very clichéd.
In summary, a fairly interesting novel, far too weighed down by its morals and unlikable characters.
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