Photo via
Maybe because my dream is to one day be an editor for a fashion magazine or maybe because I worship Meryl Streep (who doesn’t?), I adore The Devil Wears Prada. As masochistic as it sounds, I want to be Andy Sachs. I want to suffer at the hands of Miranda Priestly. I want to run around Manhattan fetching Starbucks. So years ago when I found out that the Anne Hathaway film is based on a book, I immediately put it on my running to-read list. Last summer in New York (yes, I know I’m terribly late) I finally read it and loved it. So here’s my review (finally)!
Name: The Devil Wears Prada
Author: Lauren Weisberger
Year: 2003
Premise: Recent college graduate Andrea Sachs moves to New York City in the hopes of working in publishing, her dream magazine being The New Yorker, and ends up landing a job at Runway, a major fashion gazette. As the junior assistant of Miranda Priestly, EIC of Runway, she lives the life “a million girls would die for” but hates every second of the hellish, aggravating, exasperating job. Along the way, her relationships with family, friends and colleagues are tested and she must ultimately decide whether or not she wants this lifestyle.
*Note: The novel’s plot line is fairly identical to the movie, but contains several significant changes.*
Review: The book is extremely well-written and captivating. I never found myself bored while reading it and never wanted to put it down. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the film or wants to read an intriguing plot about New York City, journalism and life in your twenties. As always, there were differences between the film and book. In some respects, I preferred the book’s original elements. For example, the book includes Andy’s best friend (who comes with her own major additions to the plot), while the film doesn’t. The ending of the novel is also very different from the film’s, although I prefer the film’s ending. Other key details differentiate the book from its movie counterpart. It’s definitely worth a read!
Rating: 5/5