When Life Gives You Lululemons

The Devil Effect

Laura Weisberger's best-selling book, The Devil Wears Prada,  was turned into a memorable film, starring Meryl Streep as the haughty fashion magazine editor,  Miranda Priestly, allegedly inpired by Vogue's Anna Wintour.  

The sequel to this novel, Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns, was not in the same league, but the characters obviously did not let go of their hold on the author, because a third book is out, titled, When Life Gives YouLululemons (a stylish brand of athleisure wear). Emily Charlton from the earlier book returns along with two gal pals, and the action shifts to suburban Greenwich, amidst a gaggle of women who could give any normal female nightmares.

Former model Karolina, married to a senator, Graham Hartwell, finds herself in disgrace for being caught driving drunk. She has to give up on her beloved stepson, Harry, and hide out in Greenwich to avoid the horrible media attention. Her friend  Miriam Kagan, once a high-powered lawyer, has dropped out of her career to become a fulltime to homemaker. Emily finds her glamorous life as an image consultant to the rich and famous under threat from a younger rival.  While her husband is working in Hong Kong, she joins the other two to help salvage Karolina's battered reputation so that she can get custody of Harry.

For this,  she must appear to be contrite--even though she is innocent--and look normal. However, in Greenwich, normal means living in immaculate homes, producing kids only to be used as bargaining chips in the event of a divorce and being botoxed, nipped and tucked--including "bespoke lady parts"-- so that their  rich husbands don't trade them in for younger women. (Is this where the women's movement ended up?)

For all its humour,  cattiness and power-to-the-sisterhood trope, this is a depressing book. The satire is blunt, the women are insecure, brittle,  vapid; and even today, the only way to bring down a high-flying woman is to get her pregnant. Even though she is supposedly a she-devil, the book perks up in the couple of scenes in which Miranda Priestley makes an appearance.

When Life Gives You Lululemons

By Lauren Weisberger

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Pages:  343