Review: Park Avenue Summer by Renee Rosen

Genre:
Fiction

Format:
E-ARC

Publisher:
Berkley

Release Date:
April 30, 2019





Synopsis from Goodreads:

Mad Men meets The Devil Wears Prada as Renée Rosen draws readers into the glamour of 1965 New York City and Cosmopolitan Magazine, where a brazen new Editor-in-Chief--Helen Gurley Brown--shocks America by daring to talk to women about all things off limits...

New York City is filled with opportunities for single girls like Alice Weiss who leaves her small Midwestern town to chase her big city dreams and unexpectedly lands the job of a lifetime working for Helen Gurley Brown, the first female Editor-in-Chief of a then failing Cosmopolitan Magazine.

Nothing could have prepared Alice for the world she enters as editors and writers resign on the spot, refusing to work for the woman who wrote the scandalous bestseller, Sex and the Single Girl. While confidential memos, article ideas, and cover designs keep finding their way into the wrong hands, someone tries to pull Alice into this scheme to sabotage her boss. But Alice remains loyal and becomes all the more determined to help Helen succeed. As pressure mounts at the magazine and Alice struggles to make her way in New York, she quickly learns that in Helen Gurley Brown's world, a woman can demand to have it all.

My Review

After growing up in the Midwest and listening to her mother’s stories about New York City, Alice Weiss heads to the big city to make a new life for herself. She longs to be a photographer, but things don’t quite work out that way. Instead, she’s an assistant to Helen Gurley Brown, the editor of Cosmopolitan Magazine. She had no idea that this would turn out to be an opportunity of a lifetime.

Although not totally giving up on her dreams of becoming a photographer, Alice throws herself into her job. Helen is not an easy person to work for and they are met with resistance from the magazine’s hierarchy at every turn, but neither woman ever gives up.

The 1960’s come alive in this book. The author does an excellent job of painting a very vivid picture of the era. I was completely transported to this time period and it brought back many memories. Renee Rosen even uses actual celebrity names throughout the book.

I do want to point out that the main character, Alice Weiss, is a fictional character. Helen Gurley Brown’s appearance is basically true-to-life. This book is a wonderful mix of fiction and real life brought together in a dramatic fashion.

This author grabbed my attention from page one and never let me go. I enjoyed this one until the last page was swiped. Larger than life characters with an exciting setting…I loved every minute of it.

FTC Disclosure: I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.