The Secret Dreamworld Of A Shopaholic: (Shopaholic Book 1) (Shopaholic Series)

Product Information

Sophie was born in London. She studied music at New College, Oxford, but after a year switched to Politics, Philosophy and Economics. She now lives in London, UK, with her husband and family. Opening line: "Ok. Don't panic. It's only a Visa bill. It's a piece of paper, a few numbers. I mean, just how scary can a few numbers be?" And let’s face it we’ve all been there with the credit card bills which we tend to ignore as soon as that excited feeling hits us upon first entering a store. When I discovered that there was no Aha! moment for her, and no growth or anything in her character, and that somewhere down the line she marries The Guy, I decided to stop reading for good. The Guy seems intelligent and rational, so why he would hitch himself to a financial disaster in Prada heels is beyond me.

I think that if Rebecca had grown into a miraculously responsible woman, totally transformed, changing her expending ways into frugality, I would have been bored. Instead, as she growths just enough to save her skin for the collectors and find herself a handsome guy, I was entertained. I stare out of the office window at a bus driving down Oxford Street, willing myself to open the white envelope sitting on my cluttered desk. It’s only a piece of paper, I tell myself for the thousandth time. And I’m not stupid, am I? I know exactly how much this VISA bill will be. However, just in time, shopaholic Rebecca starts to grow in a surprisingly believable way. And because all the growth she experienced was in keeping with her self-centered character, it felt real, plausible, making her likable and somehow relatable. She has a great flat, a fabulous wardrobe full of the season's must-haves, and a job telling other people how to manage their money. She spends her leisure time ... shopping. And ever since I read that story, my secret fantasy has been that the same thing will happen to me. I mean, I know it sounds unlikely – but if it happened once, it can happen again, can’t it? Some dotty old woman in Cornwall will be sent my humongous bill and will pay it without even looking at it. And I’ll be sent her bill for three tins of cat food at fifty-nine pence each. Which, naturally, I’ll pay without question. Fair’s fair, after all.Ok. don’t panic. Don’t panic. It’s only a VISA bill. It’s a piece of paper; a few numbers. I mean, just how scary can a few numbers be? No. This isn't Angela's Ashes, people. Anyone who believes that a maxed out credit-card is the definition of strife deserves this book. These are the superfluous qualms of the privileged. If I ever read another review of a book like this on how "sad it was beneath the surface" all I have to say is how sad you are beneath the surface.

If you know anyone that is impulsive, spendy, and irresponsible, do not let him/her read this book. I reach gaily into the envelope, but my fingers don’t quite pull out the bill. They remain clutched around it while my mind is seized – as it is every month – by my secret dream.Confessions of a Shopaholic’ is an American film which has been directed based on the first two novels of the series. The movie is a romantic comedy and was released in the year 2009. It has been directed by P.J. Hogan and Isla Fisher has been depicted in the role of Rebecca Bloomwood in the film and she has been portrayed as an American woman rather than British. Overall Experience So they started applying to Metalwork Monthly and Cheesemakers Gazette and What Investment Plan? And they were taken on as the crappiest editorial assistant possible on no money whatsoever and were grateful. And they’ve stayed on writing about metal, or cheese, or savings, ever since – because that’s all they know. I myself started on the catchily titled Personal Investment Periodical. I learned how to copy out a press release and nod at press conferences and ask questions that sounded as though I knew what I was talking about. After a year and a half – believe it or not – I was head-hunted to Successful Saving. Vile cultural poison masquerading as a poorly-written novel. I think that a heroin addiction is less damaging to young women, and it's certainly more interesting to read about.

I reread The Shopaholic series every couple of years and I always like it. It's a sweet harmless little book that I can read with my brain turned off. And that's not a bad thing. Five solid stars for one of my favorite novels by a favorite author, Sophie Kinsella. I read this around the time of original publication; sometime in 2000, and that started my auto-buy of the subsequent books that continue this series. Visiting her parents in Surrey, to whom she would never confess her money problems, they advise her to buy an apartment. As she replies she is not rich enough , their common-sense answer is that she has to choose between save or make more money. However, this novel has several weaknesses. The first is a plot that is inconsistent in describing the situation in a narrative that is too long, and sometimes the explanation is too short. The second is a story that is not clear in the end. With these strengths and weaknesses, The Secret Dreamworld of Shopaholic is still a book that is recommended for readers to read. This novel is entertaining, very light, full of joy, and consist of rich content. The Secret Dreamworld of Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella can teach readers to think before they do something, especially about spending money. If there is a male equivalent to women’s mindless and completely uncool pursuit of name-brand (read: expensive) fashion, it would be a dude with a mullet peeling out in a Trans Am in the parking lot of a strip club blaring a Ted Nugent anthem. Maybe that previous sentence doesn't make much sense, but it was fun to write and the imagery is worth a lot more than a thousand words. I suppose that what I'm trying to say to female compulsive shoppers and the mullet guy is just stop, please. It's for your own good.

Overall Experience

Lucy: Tom's girlfriend from the first novel and later fiancée in Shopaholic Ties The Knot. She dumps him at the beginning of Shopaholic and Sister and does not appear again.