Mandatory Summer Reading

(image courtesy of http://hometownhollywood.com)

No. It is not embarrassing that I bought Lauren (or rather, ahem, LC) Conrad's book within the week it was released. It's not embarrassing that I devoured it in one day (in my cubicle at work, no less). It's not even embarrassing that I loved every page of it. I have zero shame when it comes to reading material. Nicole Richie's book? Have it, read it multiple times. Every single Gossip Girl book? Have them, read them to shreds. Valley of the Dolls (the original scandalous chick lit novel, if you ask me)? Read it for the first time when I was fourteen (yeah, my mom was proud - sarcasm). What is embarrassing is the lengths that I went to obtain a copy of LA Candy.

Remember in college, when that jerk professor would assign about 90 books with one being absolutely impossible to find? Not at any local bookstore. No one seemed to have a copy. And finally you'd just give up and decide that you can pass the class without it? That was my hunt for my own personal mandatory summer reading, LA Candy. I went last Thursday, after reading The Cut's review to my local Borders. I was positive they'd have a copy, if not many, maybe even a table full of them. But no. Not a single copy, "sold out" the dorky MIT-style salesboy told me, mystified. I checked at the Barnes & Noble (in Boston and in my suburban hometown, in hopes that my mother could get it to me). Sold out. I'm not sure when this happened, but somehow getting a copy of LA Candy was more difficult than finding sunshine in Boston these days (sad but true). I resorted to my trusty online skills and ordered myself a copy. And waited for the UPS delivery person. For days and days. When Matt, the person that handles deliveries at my office handed me the small, cardboard wrapped box this morning. I squealed. I kid you not. Squealed. He even asked me some question after that I just kind of nodded my head at without really knowing what he just asked. Hopefully he didn't ask for a date or anything too extreme.

Substance-wise? Meet reality television star Laur--I mean Jane Roberts. She has best friend Scarlett and reality tv besties Madison and Gaby. Scarlett is a feminist USC (hey, didn't Lo Bosworth go there before transferring?) freshman. Jane interns for a bitchy boss (hello Teen Vogue's Lisa Love) who is nice only on camera. Madison is a backstabbing two-faced attention hog (wonder who this reminds me of). Gaby is, "not the brightest crayon in the box" (Hmmmm. I wonder). Although LC swears that the characters and situations are fictional, I just don't quite believe it. Afterall, reading it and wondering if Heidi and Audrina are like this in person makes the read that much more enjoyable.

-M

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