The Social Climber's Handbook: A Novel

Molly Jong-Fast writes what she knows, topped with a healthy dose of imagination and a wicked sense of humor. Her first, much praised novel, Normal Girl, published when she was practically a fetus, just twenty-two years old, hit autobiographical notes detailing life as a young New York socialite. Now, our Molly’s all grown up--an Upper East Side mom of three with a financier husband, the perfect raw material to mine for this hilarious satire of life in our brave new economic world--featuring a recessionista-gone-rabid you won’t forget.

It’s the Summer of 2008. The world is on the brink of financial collapse--a disaster for many, but a total meltdown for Upper East Side housewife Daisy Greenbaum. When Daisy learns her husband is privy to dangerous information, she knows it will cost him his powerful position at The Bank, and everything his income provides, from the daily hair blow-outs to their exclusive Park Avenue apartment. Already struggling to keep her family together in the face of Manhattan prep school drama and a persistent mistress nipping at her husband’s well-heeled heels, Daisy can’t let this little economy issue get in her way. To keep her family on top, Daisy will eliminate anything--and, more importantly, anyone--that stands in her way, one body bag at a time. She may even break a nail doing it.

As heads literally start to roll, things gets infinitely more complicated for our Daisy. Molly Jong-Fast unequivocally scores big with this outrageous look at life at the precarious top. Her trademark wit and keen eye shine through, making this twisted tale a hit, and definitely the most fun with recession you’ll ever have.