Rating: 
Summary: a decent book for the beach
Review: this book was fine at first, i loved the ny references, being a native. it was mostly alot of fluff though, nothing substantial. the beginning was better than the end. it got progressively more stupid. yet, i enjoyed it for what it is, a fun empty headed read when you're not in the mood for anything more solid.
Rating:
Summary: good beach read, but don't expect anything spectacular
Review: This book is great for a semi-trashy summer read. However, don't expect anything more profound than some whining and attempted sympathy grabbing.This book is about "Andrea", the assistant to "Miranda Priestly" the editor in chief of "Runway" magazine. It is a well known fact that the author (Lauren) was the assistant to Anna Wintour, the editor in chief of Vogue. While the author claims that the book is a work of pure fiction, it is not a hard stretch of the imagination to figure out that by "fiction" she must been first hand reporting. The most interesting thing about this book is that it gives someone NOT in fashion a glimpse into this insane world of size 00s, free designer clothes and over the top expense accounts. It describes, in detail, the insane whims of "Miranda Priestly", such as having a private jet fly a copy of the new Harry Potter book to Paris just so her daughters could have it ONE day before all of their friends. That is the most interesting thing. The subplot of "Andrea"'s personal relationships and her ambition of writing for the New Yorker really seems almost trivial in the novel since the subplot is not very well developed. Her friend (singular) and boyfriend both get increasingly discouraged with her because she works 12 hours days and does not have an inordinate amount of time to be with them. Her best friend develops a major addiction and her boyfriend (who is a teacher) basically turns into a colossal whiner who has no regard for her career. Throw into the mix her flirtation with a "famous young writer" and the subplot attempts to overwhelm the actual main storyline. This book, while entertaining, should have stuck to its main purpose: to discuss her career in fashion and her crazy boss, not to try to push her personal life into the foreground. The whole POINT of the book was that as a result of her job, she had no personal life, hence the plot development problems. I just feel that for someone who went to an Ivy League school and aspires to write for the New Yorker, this novel could have been written much better.
Rating: 
Summary: A fun weekend read
Review: I loved this book. I also read the Nanny Diaries and although there are similarities to plot line, I was hoping it would not end the same. You will have to read it to see. This is a fun "escape" book especially for someone living in a rural area hppily raising two kids. Does that stuff really happen? Take the book to the beach, or playground with one eye on the kids, you won't regret it.
Rating: 
Summary: The Writer Needs Writing Lessons
Review: THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA is the story of one Andrea Sachs, an annoyingly passive-aggressive Ivy League princess who we are told is so out of touch with fashion that she can't pronouce Givenchy and who thinks that Target carries a brand called Massimo (it's Mossimo) - but yet who knows what designer John Galliano looks like. Andrea, straight out of Brown, wants to be a serious writer for The New Yorker, so she of course follows her dream by becoming a personal assistant to the editor-in-chief at Vogue-clone Runway - as opposed to, oh, say, actually pursuing WRITING. This is our first clue that Andrea is seriously out of touch with reality, and it only gets worse. We are informed (it is painfully apparent that author Lauren Weisberger never heard of the writing maxim "show, don't tell") that Andrea is quite possibly the Mother Theresa of Manhattan. Caring Andrea buys expensive Starbucks drinks for the homeless and actually - gasp!- learns the names of the drivers who ferry her around on her magazine's account. Virtuous Andrea turns down the advances of current "It Boy" hotshot writer, even though he has connections at her dream job, The New Yorker - as we are reminded every 50 pages. (We are told Andrea spurns him because "It Boy" is a lech, even though his behavior on paper is perfectly gentlemanly. Perhaps the confusion stems from Weisberger's wooden dialogue, which is overwritten and unbelievable to the ear, with no distinction in voice between the characters.) High-minded Andrea, who has actually read a Russian novelist and taken psych classes, looks down her nose at her shallow fashion-crazed colleagues, although that doesn't stop her from taking home from the office thousands of dollars' worth of Gucci, Jimmy Choo, Chanel, Oscar de la Renta, and matching Louis Vuitton luggage. However, even would-be saints have their dark sides, and Andrea's comes out in quite possibly the nastiest, grossest and passive-aggressive ways ever: she wipes her dirty hands on her boss's dry-cleaning and serves her boss lunch on dirty dishes, while dreaming of spitting into the food. There is nothing likeable or sympathetic about Andrea, and her whiny diatribes about her miserable working life wear on the reader after page 100. When her boyfriend, the male Mother Theresa, finally tells her off, the reader cheers even it does come 260 pages too late. THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA has gained attention because it is supposedly a roman-a-clef about life as an assistant to Vogue editor Anna Wintour. However, the Anna figure here is such a caricature, any deeper understanding or insight into the real person is impossible. And we can't figure out why Andrea puts up with her in the first place. Yes, yes, we are told Andrea's reasons (think I'm mentioning The New Yorker too much? Then you haven't read the book) but the reader can't suspend disbelief. Besides, as someone who led an earlier life as a Hollywood assistant - Andrea had it fairly easy. Like her character, who we are told managed to score $38,000 after selling all the stuff she "took" from the office, I hope Lauren Weisberger is capitalizing on the success of this novel. Because without the "Wintour is the devil" hype to sell her novel, her writing is vastly subpar. And the editor did her no favors - she let errors such as confusing "salon" with "saloon," and several confusing time shifts, stand. In the acknowledgements, Weisberger says to blame the editor for taking out all the really funny parts - one wishes that some of that had been allowed to stay, for the novel could definitely use a lighter touch. Too serious to be a satire, and too over-the-top to be a real life look at a fashion magazine, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA is instead what no book should be: boring.
Rating:
Summary: Not impressed
Review: I picked up The Devil Wears Prada with a great deal of anticipation. Unfortunately, I was not impressed with the content of this novel. First of all, I found various inconsistencies in Weisberger's writing. The course of the story took some abrupt turns from one chapter to the next. Also, despite the fact that the author developed a rather believable character in Miranda, the development of secondary characters was missing. I had difficulty remembering who was who most of the time. I give the The Devil Wears Prada three stars because, structural errors aside, Weisberger grasped the protagonist's frustrations as she endured menial labor with unflinching accuracy. Having once worked as a personal assistant for a faux celebrity not unlike Miranda Priestly, I know the aforementioned frustrations quite well. All and all, The Devil Wears Prada is a mediocre read. I wouldn't discourage others from reading it, but I hope to have offered some insight on what to expect from this book...
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining!
Review: THE DEVI WEARS PRADA, by Lauren Weisberger, is an entertaining story. The characters are fun, the dialogue moves along nicely, and the plot interesting enough. I think most readers will appreciate this one as much as I did. John Savoy
Savoy International
Motion Pictures INC.
Beverly Hills, California
Rating:
Summary: Well I, for one, really liked it
Review: Ok, folks, lighten up! Lauren Weisberger never claimed to be Tolstoy. This book delivers on just what it is: a light, fun, dishy story about the mostly unknown inner workings of the fashion world. I thought it was a great read. And for those of you complaining about spending money on a book you didn't like - have you ever heard of the library?? Grow up, people.
Nice job, Lauren. Look forward to more.
Rating:
Summary: It's good, easy reading....but I liked the devil.
Review: Well...the book was a good way to waste a few alone-time hours but I'm not crazy about it. It was...ok. But I have to admit, I kind of liked the devil, because Andrea's (main character) continuous uh, um, uh stuttering and wimpiness made me want to scream at her too. But a fun read.
Rating: 
Summary: Definitely a beach read!
Review: This book reads like a memoir and gives a glimpse of the fashion world and all its perks. Andrea ("Ahn-dre-a/Andy") Sachs works as an underpaid, overworked personal assistant/slave to Editor-in-chief Miranda Priestly of "Runway" magazine. Yet, she receives $38,000 worth of Louis Vuitton luggage and haute couture fashion, professional hair and make-up and massages at the Ritz in Paris, the opportunity to "borrow" exorbitantly expensive clothing (Gucci, Oscar de la Renta, Prada, etc.) that the average American woman can only read about in magazines. I'm not a big fan of Andy as protagonist. I think the book could've been improved if the story came from Andrea's senior colleague Emily's point of view. At least Emily had a passion for fashion. I'd probably sympathize more with Emily who made an effort towards a job well done. Andy just came off as arrogant, and self-centered- a result of attending some fancy "Ivy League" college so little tasks like fetching, faxing, and finding are beneath her. I'm surprised Andy couldn't "get it" in the end that she is like her boss. She demands the world to revolve around her. Andy never worked at a real job, whereas Miranda worked most her life to get into a position as the most powerful woman in publishing. I saw no real growth in the protagonist, which was disappointing. Andy should've made the best of her position and learned something. She's not the only gal in the world with a difficult boss.
Rating:
Summary: Save your Money
Review: I bought this on my way out for a 12 hour flight and wished I'd saved my money...I would have been more entertained reading the Delta Shopper catalogue or the in-flight safety manual. Good premis, but very poorly written, cardboard characters, etc...I really can't add anything new to what the many other negative reviews already listed...
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