Reviewed on Richard and Judy on 13th July 2005.
A redundant woman reinvents herself.  Based on the author’s experiences, it’s a real eye-opener to the wheeling and dealing of well-heeled New Yorkers as they battle to place their four-year olds in the best private kindergartens!  It’s an astute hoot. Really poking at the lengths people will go to be seen to be socially elite, all bound round a charming romance in a nice easy read.  It has just been chosen as one of the six featured titles for Richard and Judy's summer read.

Comparison: Allison Pearson, Wendy Holden, Isabel Wolff.
Similar this month: Hester Browne, Carmen Reid.

Synopsis

Having lost her high-powered Wall Street job, her husband and her plush Park Avenue apartment in one afternoon, Ivy Ames emerges broken but unbowed. The newly-single mother-of-two picks herself up, dusts herself down and reinvents herself as a private school admissions adviser whose well-heeled clients will do (literally) anything to get their children into the A-list schools. Thus begins a fast-paced and very funny rom com as Ivy's bid to support her family and regain her self-esteem becomes a tale of modern-day reinvention - and unexpected romance.

Reviews

'A very funny and frequently eye-popping tale of unnatural selection in the jungle of New York City's private kindergartens ... If you think you may be a neurotic parent, read this and feel sane'

ALLISON PEARSON

'A tale both harrowing and hilarious'

DAILY TELEGRAPH

'Hilarious, spirited and wise. With humour and heart, Karen Quinn brilliantly skewers the insanely competitive world of wealth we love to hate'

LESLIE SCHNUR, author of THE DOG WALKER.

About the Author

New York-based Karen Quinn runs Smart City Kids, a business dedicated to guiding families through the application process to Manhattan's most competitive schools. More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation