February 2011 Guest Editor Carmen Reid on Candace Bushnell...
I’m crazy about Candace. How does her writing compare to the SATC TV series? The TV series is M&Ms and Candace is like silky, sinful, 70% pure dark chocolate. My favourite of her books is One Fifth Avenue: so glitteringly sophisticated and hard-edged. This is New York in the Noughties and so prophetic of the downturn. It’s packed with bad girls, ambitious girls, larger-than-life girls. But for teen romance The Carrie Diaries is a wonderful whirl. It’s Carrie: the high school years and Candace absolutely captures the huge, emotional punch of first love. The agony and fantasy as Carrie longs for Sebastian. The ecstasy when she has him. The inevitable tragedy of losing him... and to her best friend. It’s wonderful!
May 2010 Book of the Month.
The Lovereading view...
This terrific teen prequel to ‘Sex and the City’ is a sexy, funny, coming-of-age and totally engaging look at how Carrie became THE Carrie Bradshaw. She was just a regular girl growing up in Connecticut. We meet her here in her senior year of high school. She and her best friends are inseparable and then Sebastian Kydd comes into the picture. Sebastian is a bad boy – older, intriguing and unpredictable. Carrie falls into the relationship until a friend’s betrayal makes her question everything. With an unforgettable cast of characters, The Carrie Diaries is the story of how a regular girl learns to think for herself, and evolves into a sharp, insightful writer. Readers will learn about her family background, how she found her writing voice, and the indelible impression her early friendships and relationships left on her. Through adventures both audacious and poignant, we'll see what brings Carrie to her beloved New York City, where her new life begins.
Meet Carrie Bradshaw before 'Sex and the City!' The Carrie Diaries is the coming-of-age story of one of the most iconic characters of our generation. Before Sex and the City, Carrie Bradshaw was a small town girl who knew she wanted more. She's ready for real life to start, but first she must navigate her senior year of high school. Up until now, Carrie and her friends have been inseparable. Then Sebastian Kydd comes into the picture, and a friend's betrayal makes her question everything. With an unforgettable cast of characters, The Carrie Diaries is the story of how a regular girl learns to think for herself, and evolves into a sharp, insightful writer. Readers will learn about her family background, how she found her writing voice, and the indelible impression her early friendships and relationships left on her. Through adventures both audacious and poignant, we'll see what brings Carrie to her beloved New York City, where her new life begins.
'Intriguing and highly entertaining.' Helen Fielding, author of 'Bridget Jones's Diary
'Hilarious! a compulsively readable book, served up in bite-sized chunks of irrepressible irreverence.' Marie Claire
Author
About Candace Bushnell
Candace Bushnell is the creator of SEX AND THE CITY and has been described by the EVENING STANDARD as a 'genius'. The OBSERVER compared her to Nancy Mitford and the SUNDAY TELEGRAPH to 'Jane Austen with a Martini.'
Below is a Q&A with this author.
I can’t live without… books.
If I wasn’t a writer… I’d want to be an Olympic Dressage Equestrian.
I feel most comfortable in… my own skin. You take yourself wherever you go.
The book I reread the most is… Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton. The main character, Undine Sprague, is wicked and wonderfully unrepentant.
My favorite vintage piece is… a green fringed Michael Kors dress I bought in the late eighties.
The three words that describe me best are: imagination, passion, determination.
The best thing about New York City is… the people. Everyone has a story.
My mantra is: Never have a mantra. Or a favorite color.
The best decision I’ve ever made… was to believe in myself.
The best part about writing The Carrie Diaries was: Writing The Carrie Diaries! I know I’m lucky to have found work I love to do.
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