Trading Up

Bushnell, Candace

ISBN 10: 1401397468 ISBN 13: 9781401397463

Publisher: Hyperion, 2003

Synopsis

Janey Wilcox is an M.A.W. (that's Model/Actress/Whatever to the uninitiated). The problem with Janey, the protagonist of Candace Bushnell's first novel, Trading Up, is not the M or the A part. It's the W. Here is a rare alphabetical anomaly: In Janey's case, W stands for "prostitute." Oh, Janey never crosses the line into actual hookerdom, but she does sleep with extremely wealthy men in the hopes they'll improve her status, her financial situation, or her lifestyle. When we first met Janey in Bushnell's novella collection 4 Blondes, she was up to her usual tricks (so to speak)--scamming a guy for a Hamptons vacation rental. At the opening of Trading Up, her fortunes have improved. She's now the star of a Victoria's Secret ad campaign, and as such she's found access to undreamed-of echelons of New York society. She makes friends with Mimi Kilroy, a senator's daughter "at the very top of the social heap in New York." She gets invited to all the best parties. And she finally finds a wealthy man who will actually marry her: Seldon Rose, a powerful entertainment industry executive. Of course, Janey's social ambitions are not stoppered by her marriage to Seldon, and the clash between her expectations (more parties!) and his (normal life) send Janey into a tailspin that leads to heartbreak. Bushnell is clearly trying to channel Edith Wharton (The Custom of the Country is even invoked by Janey as a screenplay idea), but ends up sounding a lot more like a cross between Tama Janowitz and Judith Krantz. This is a novel about shopping and sex, and while it's fizzy enough, it's not Cristal. --Claire Dederer

About this title

About the Author:

Candace Bushnell is the author of Sex and the City, Four Blondes, and Trading Up. She has been a columnist for The New York Observer and a contributing editor to Vogue.

From AudioFile:

The ever ambitious Janey Wilcox, who describes herself as an M.A.W.--model/actress/whatever--has just starred in a Victoria's Secret billboard in New York City. Her 15 minutes of larger-than-life fame provide her the perfect opportunity to finally make it big in New York society. Janey parties in the Hamptons for the express purpose of snagging a wealthy husband before she finds herself yesterday's news. Luck is with her, but the trouble begins when she discovers that her expectations of her new glamorous life starkly conflict with those of her more traditional husband. Mira Sorvino reads this social satire in a flat, matter-of-fact tone that removes any humor and emotion from its soap-opera plot. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

About this edition

• Publisher: Hyperion
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 1401397468
• ISBN 13: 9781401397463
• Binding: Audio CD