Author: Lauren Weisberger
ISBN: 978-0-00-830367-9
RRP: $29.99
Publication Date: 5th June 2018
Publisher: Harper Collins
Copy: Courtesy of the Publisher
So, I had heard of The Devil Wears Prada but I have not read the book or watched the movie. It’s generally not my genre. When Life Gives You Lululemons is the 3rd in the series and from a quick Goodreads glance seems to be the highest rated.
Emily Charlton is an in-demand image consultant who is called away from a New Years Eve party to deal with a celebrity publicity nightmare, in another city. She drops everything to fly cross country and go into damage control. Unfortunately she was called by the agent and the actual celebrity has been approached by someone else. Emily loses another celebrity client to a much younger rival with her finger on the social-media pulse.
A string of client losses sees Emily take a hit to her confidence and hide out in the suburbs with her best friend Miriam, a place she never thought she would spend any prolonged amount of time.
I went into this one with a pretty open mind and not much in the way of expectations and I was pleasantly surprised. The entire premise of this story is so far out of the realm of anything I would experience in my life that it was like a fairytale. Weisberger is certainly up with the celebrity current affairs and she’s not afraid to name drop and litter her narrative with celebrity scandals that you may remember from the headlines, though always quite vague and brief.
There are a few universal themes of friendship, parenthood and the loss of your sense of self with big changes in life.
Miriam is a mother of three, newly SAHM in the suburbs after a high-powered legal career in the city. She made the choice so she had more time to spend at home with her children but we can see that she’s missing her work and floundering a little in this new life she’s made. She loves her children and spending the extra time with them but is losing that sense of self that is apart from her roles of wife and mother.
Life in Greenwich really seems to me like life in a different world. SAHM’s who fill their days with exercise classes, coffee catch-ups and early cocktails. A suburb rife with gossip and crazy behaviour.
Karolina is married to a senator and wealthy in her own right thanks to a lucrative career as a model, until her world crumbles around her following a questionable DUI charge that made headlines.
Miriam and Emily approach Karolina to offer support and the three build on their connections to forge a friendship, and offer their expertise to help Karolina recover from the very public dumping by her husband.
When Life Gives You Lululemons is a story that I really enjoyed. I think it’s one that you can enjoy as a light and amusing fun read, or you can look at it in a lot more depth and explore all the issues going on that tell a terrible story of the world we live in. The wit was razor-sharp, and it certainly had pointy edges that cut sometimes.
I enjoyed a lot of things about this one and I actually loved all three main characters, even though they wee painfully irritating at times. I loved the way each of the characters grew throughout the story and came out the other side completely different people.
Weisberger paints a disturbing picture of suburbia and the things that money and influence can buy, but also the fickle nature of ‘mum friends’ and the importance of those deep and true friendships that we couldn’t survive without. A story rife with deplorable behaviour, a couple of predictable twists and some surprises.
Witty, sarcastic and a reminder that wealth doesn’t necessarily bring happiness or buy good sense or decency. Definitely worth a read.
Lauren Wesberger can be found on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and their website.
When Life Gives You Lululemons is published by Harper Collins and is available now from Angus & Robertson Bookworld, Booktopia and where all good books are sold.
Thanks to Harper Collins 30 of our Beauty and Lace Club Members will be reading When Life Gives You Lululemons so please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments below.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
Right, this is the second time I’ve written this review because the first one somehow got erased ☹️ I really loved this story, ‘When life gives you lululemons’. I found it a quick, easy read that I polished off in two days while I was home sick in bed. It was a story that was a breath of fresh air after the heavy, thrillers that I’ve been reading lately! The story line was one that you would see in a movie, or in a celebrity magazine and is so completely different to my life.
I really enjoyed the three main characters and how they developed during the story all changing so that their lives were happy in the end, but not in a sickeningly sweet way. I feel that there could be a follow up story and I wouldn’t be sad to read another part. I enjoyed how the author peppered the story with enough current events and real life celebrity names to make it feel like the story was something happening in real life.
I’m frustrated because my other review was so much better. But I can’t recall what else I wrote. Thank you Beauty and Lace for another great book >:o)
When Life Gives you Lululemons is cleverly written and very hard to put down!
The story starts with the life of Emily Charlton, a popular image consultant for celebrities. When she starts losing her clients to a younger rival, she really starts to doubt herself and her abilities. Her best friend Miriam is struggling with her choice of new lifestyle change and leaves her successful career to focus her time on family. And then there’s Miriam’s friend, Karolina, who is married to a high profile politician and is wrongly accused of Driving Under the Influence.
This is a very refreshing read with a few surprises and plenty of sarcasm. Congratulations to Lauren Weisberger for a wonderful and light hearted look at modern life when being wealthy is not all it seems, and the importance of women staying strong through life’s ordeals. I absolutely love Lauren’s humour and strongly recommend this book.
Thank you very much Beauty and Lace for this opportunity. Now I need to read “The Devil Wears Prada”!
When Life Gives you Lululemons is a good read of the up and downs of life when your husband wants to trade you in for a better model. So a DUI is in order for Karolina so the senator can end the marriage without looking bad.
Loved, loved, loved this book. I couldn’t put it down. Has everything – gossip, humour, politics, money, family, the perfect career and how easily it can be all lost with lies and greed. Alternating between each personal story of three close friends and their strive for happiness. Finding out everything you believed was perfect now vanishing in the blink of an eye thanks to some media hype. A story you can relate to. Great friends who support each through a life of ups and downs, triumphs, overwhelming heartache and loss. How they rebuild and change their lives in the most personal and dramatic way possible. Its a story about how stepping out of your comfort zone could be your only option.
I really enjoyed this book and will now go back and read the other books written by Lauren Weisberger.
Easy to read book! The storyline has lots of ups & downs, sarcasm & shows how important good friendships can be.
Well first thing I read this book in 3 nights! I haven’t read a book that quick since the lemony snickett and harry potter books came out when I was a child. I couldn’t put it down it had me captivated from the start and I was willing to give up my sleep (which I love) to read this.
The book follows the lives of 3 ladies who are friends. Each having their own battle in their lives. When Karolina has something dreadful happen to her it brings them closer together. Emily working as an image consultant works to rebuild Karolinas image whilst trying to help Miriam sort out her home issues.
Following the twists and turns and ups and downs. I really loved this book and I hope that the writer does a sequel. I am definitely going to read all her other books because I seriously loved this one!!
5 out of 5 stars.
The follow up from Devil Wears Prada, follows Emily as she progresses in her life & career beyond the days of Runway (some small references to Andy and Miranda) and focuses on her PR business and what seems like a fragmented personal life. Her career is slackening as she struggles to keep up with social media advances and she takes some time out to realign her goals by meeting her old friend, a once city career driven woman in NYC now a stay at home mum in Connecticut. The author shines a light on those rich stay at home mums who brunch and lunch and what they really get up to (bored and lonely) while their husbands are at work (or having affairs). It also delves into the power struggle between men and women and how hard it is to repair a damaged reputation. I liked the story overall, but felt it could have had more pace throughout. Would recommend for anyone that likes an easy read and stories of female retribution.
This is definitely a “lie by the pool” holiday read with classic themes of female friendship, marriage, parenthood and aging. Lacked depth initially but gets better as the story and characters develops. I have never read Devil wears Prada but I can see how they would make this into a Hollywood movie. Light, easy reading, particular if you are interested in celebrity news.
From the author of The Devil Wears Prada comes the next outrageous book, When Life Gives You Lululemons. The Devil Wears Prada was Lauren Weisberger’s break out novel, starring Anne Hathaway as Andy and Meryl Streep as the iconic Miranda Priestly in the blockbuster movie. Three standalone novels followed before Lauren took readers back to Andy’s world in Revenge Wears Prada. With mixed reviews, Lauren’s next book took fans into the hedonistic world of professional tennis. Now Lauren is back with Miranda’s assistant story, Emily Charlton. She hasn’t forgotten longtime fans of Andy and Miranda though. For Andy, it is right that she does get the briefest of mentions as this isn’t about her while Miranda is regularly mentioned. Surprisingly, Miranda plays a greater role towards the end in Emily’s journey.
When Life Gives You Lululemons is set in New York at least 10 years after the Devil Wears Prada. Told in the first person through alternating chapters, it follows the path of not one, but three very different women; Miriam, Karolina and of course, Emily. At 38 years old, Emily has left the fashion world commanded by Miranda Priestly behind and is now an image consultant to the stars. With her blunt yet professional manner, Emily is a career woman who has it all, including a loving husband who regularly travels for his job. Until she starts losing jobs to Gen Y. As one by one Emily’s clients leave her to turn to others to clean up their mess, Emily turns to her friend Miriam for solace.
Miriam was a strong woman who is now the polar opposite of Emily. Like Emily, she too was once a career woman until she gave it all up for her family. Two children later, Miriam has swapped city life for suburban life. Miriam is the much needed character that readers can relate to as she provides normality in the crazy world inhabited by her friends. Loving, affectionate and supportive to those that are a part of her life, Miriam is a longtime friend to Emily. As a good friend, Miriam is able to see the strengths and weaknesses in Emily. Most importantly as a friend she can tell Emily the truth when it is needed. This also applies to Karolina, an acquaintance from the past who doesn’t know the impact that both Miriam and Emily will have on her life.
Karolina is the former Polish model who appears to have it all. A loving husband and a step son, she is also wealthy. Despite all her riches, Karolina is not the typical cliché, She has not forgotten her roots and remains a modest woman who puts her son first. Until it all comes crashing down when her husband, Graham, sets her up for unknown purposes. Still in love with her husband, Karolina is not able to see the truth of the situation until Miriam steps in, with Emily tagging along. Miriam provides the comfort that Karolina needs, it is Emily’s honesty that opens Karolina’s eyes to the truth about Graham. With her friends help, Karolina becomes a stronger woman as she fights for what she believes in.
Reminiscent of The First Wives Club, When Life Gives You Lululemons is a novel about the importance of friendship when times are tough.
When Life Gives You Lululemons
Thanks to B+L and Harper Collins for sending this book, I really enjoyed it. I had no idea until it came that it was from the Author of “The devil wears Prada” and I certainly didn’t expect familiar characters like Miranda and Emily to pop up frequently through it
Its an extremely well written story about what happens when your husband decides he’s not in love any more told by different women (as pertains to their circumstance). To begin with I didn’t like that each chapter was from a different character but I found after a few chapters it flowed much better and the stories became deeply intertwined
It gave an interesting look into the life of a privileged Stay at home mum , I love the fact some mystery was thrown in….“what happened to Karolina, was she really drinking and driving with her kid in the car?”
A great read and a nice relaxing weekend get away type book ☺