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Molly Jong-Fast's The Social Climber’s Handbook Reviewed By Susan Ravagni of Bookpleasures.com
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Susan Ravagni

Reviewer Susan Ravagni: Susan lives in the greater Boston area and works in the medical industry.  When not found prowling the aisles of local independent bookstores, she’s either out conquering one of New Hampshire’s White Mountains or delighting in the pounding Atlantic surf. An avid reader her entire life, Susan took the plunge and published her first book,  I'm Just a Girl.  A medical mystery thriller – with a comedic twist, I’m Just a Girl had been percolating in Susan’s mind for a number of years.  And guess what?  Writing is addictive!  So her next book, It Keeps Getting Better, is almost complete. To find out more about Susan, Click Here

 



 
By Susan Ravagni
Published on May 15, 2011
 


Author:  Molly Jong-Fast
Publisher:  Villard
ISBN:  978-0-345-50189-9

 

 Click Here To Purchase The Social Climber's Handbook: A Novel
 
Author:  Molly Jong-Fast
Publisher:  Villard
ISBN:  978-0-345-50189-9
 
 
2008:  the good old days, just before the market crashed.  In Manhattan’s Upper East Side a number of characters reside in their luxurious, ultra-expensive homes.  One in particular, Daisy Greenbaum, likes her status and with no conscience what-so-ever, decides she’s going to keep that position at all costs.
 
You see, hubby Dick Greenbaum, is some sort of financial whiz, a “quant” (whatever that means).  Dick, the whiz, works for Goldman Sachs or “The Bank” (another inexplicable moniker since I thought they were an investment company).  He figures out that the whole banking situation is a house of cards and he thinks he should do something about it, like notify his boss.
 
Unfortunately for Dick and Daisy, Dick’s dull-witted but greedy boss is going to fire him for his whistle-blowing.  Well, Daisy won’t stand for that, no siree.  Gone would be the multi-million dollar home, the fancy schools for the girls, the red-soled shoes and $90 yoga pants.  In a surprise move, Daisy takes care of their little problem.  But one thing leads to another and we find that Daisy has to take care of lots of little problems. 
 
For about two seconds I thought Dick was going to be the good guy in this story but amazingly he ends up being a philandering, self-absorbed, and morally bankrupt person.  Pretty much like his wife.
 
The body count goes up as Daisy, the social climber, becomes Daisy the desperate social grasper.  Closer and closer she comes to being discovered.  Dick is pretty certain that Daisy is the cause of the disappearing people, he’s a little scared and a little turned on.  A snoopy blogger is trying to put it all together, and he gets closer and closer to the truth.  In the end, does Daisy get caught?  That’s the nail-biting question.
 
Jong-Fast has some pretty snappy dialogue and quips.  I did smile at: “Dick looked over at Petra, his favorite immoral act… He could remember Petra’s incredibly smooth skin – mistress skin, unmarked by years of childbearing and nagging.”  But on the other side of the snappy dialogue was a profusion of bewildering financial words such as shorting, leveraging, and level 3 capital (huh?). 
 
Also, while I applaud Jong-Fast’s ability to assume numerous points of view, she would sometimes rapidly switch from one person’s inner machinations to another in a somewhat confusing fashion.  I do recognize, though, that other readers might actually enjoy this device; especially the short attention span generation.
 
 Jong-Fast reminds me of the Jackie Collins novels of old:  characters that you didn’t really like but, like a car accident, you can’t look away.  Or in this case, you can’t stop reading.  But I felt that the dark comedy was more dark, than comedy.
 
While I have some mixed feelings about The Social Climber’s Handbook, I can certainly see the appeal.  The press release accompanying this book, described it as American Psycho meets Heathers meets The Talented Mr. Ripley.  That seems to be a fairly appropriate characterization.  So if that intrigues you, pick up a copy.  You should have a delightfully guilty pleasure.

 Click Here To Purchase The Social Climber's Handbook: A Novel