Pampered as a kid, Julie Klam learns to find purpose and live in the real world in this hilarious, self-deprecating memoir.
Julie Klam was raised to be a princess. On occasion, young Julie is whisked from her Bedford, NY, elementary school by her fabulous mother to go shopping at Bergdorf’s in Manhattan—hence the book’s title. Her mother and movie-star-perfect aunts teach her two important life lessons: always look “GAW-juss” and find a rich husband. Unsurprisingly, Julie grows up conflicted by her life’s seeming lack of purpose, and soon after leaving college, falls into writing (because it’s the least like a career), suffers anxiety attacks, and meets her most frequent companion—her therapist. Despite her mother’s advice, Julie falls in love with her workmate. Not only is Paul far from wealthy, but he also becomes ill not long after they marry and loses his job. After the birth of their daughter, Julie starts to realize that she needs to become the source of the good luck she desperately craves and, finding her life’s meaning, she soars.
Klam is a hilarious writer: self-deprecating, wry, and dry as a midday martini. Unfortunately, her wit reveals itself slowly. Coupled with the frustration of hearing someone so pampered complain so much, a few chapters pass before her charming personality becomes bewitching. But soon enough, the Sex and the City meets Little House on the Prairie story of her life has you cheering her on like an old friend. By the last page, it’s as if you have chatted with your pal long-distance for hours but you don’t want to put down the phone.
