Book Review: The Devil Wears Prada

In my quest to find a good book to read, I stumbled upon Revenge Wears Prada, the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada. I was immediately intrigued! I had seen the movie, but had not read the first book. My book publishing class kicked in and figured that if the sequel is being released, then the first book will be at the bookstore. Surely enough, it was, and I purchased with glee...okay, maybe a little disappointment. I bought it a day after Employee Appreciation Week at work, so my discount was back to normal, but I digress.

For those who are not familiar with the story, here's a quick run-through. Andrea Sachs somehow lands the job that "a million girls would die for": the assistant of the most powerful woman in publishing and fashion. Andy has her own dreams, but is willing to take this job for a year just to get ahead and later work at another publication. What Andy discovers is that her boss is super-no-nonsense, lacking compassion, and super demanding. Within the span of that year, she learns what it takes to make it and how much she is willing to sacrifice to appease her boss in any way possible.

I quite enjoyed the book. I was able to finish it within a week, which is a record for the past year. While reading, I thought of two people: myself and Mia. I want to eventually get into the world of publishing, more in particular the fashion magazine industry, but with the two degrees I'll have in the next year and a half, I feel I'll have to start from the bottom of a publishing house and work my way up for fear that I do not know enough about fashion to score a higher position fresh out of school. And Mia, as in Princess Mia from The Princess Diaries series, because Mia was awkward in some ways, but she had spunk and big dreams. The great irony of these two stories is the fact the Anne Hathaway played both Mia AND Andy. How fitting, huh?

Truth be told, I had thought about buying the book a year or two ago, but I read a review that turned me away. It was actually recommended in another book I have about making it in the fashion industry. Now that I have read it, I think I would have enjoyed it regardless, but now that I have done one year of graduate school in publishing and writing, I have a better understanding of the industry and experience. I highly recommend this book for any other ladies (or gents) that want a good laugh and some look into publishing (it is said that the story was influenced by the author's experience with Anna Wintour, editor in chief of Vogue.)

$14.99 at Barnes and Noble, or less on Amazon, but go to a bookstore. Down with Amazon!

Note: this is my first book review. I usually fly through a book and move on, but I decided to finally share my thoughts on one.