Little Pink Slips (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "The Chanel sample sale, holy of holies for the aspiring fashionista..." (more)
Key Phrases: corporate editor, fashion closet, Bebe Blake, Magnolia Gold, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Former McCall's editor-in-chief Koslow features in her mellow roman à clef Magnolia Gold, who gets booted out of her magazine kingdom, but lands on stilettos that "you could almost mistake for Manolos." Magnolia, editor-in-chief of Lady magazine, has her dream job, a Cartier watch and a fab New York apartment, but Lady's publisher and parent company president cozy up to gauche celebrity Bebe Blake and decide—against Magnolia's warnings that Bebe will alienate the mag's "red state Republican" readership—to turn Lady into Bebe and demote Magnolia to "corporate editor," a bogus position that's soon eliminated. (Bebe may remind readers of Rosie O'Donnell, who assumed Koslow's duties at McCall's once it was relaunched as Rosie.) As Bebe ravages the magazine, a down-and-out Magnolia orchestrates her return while she and best friend Abbey run through their share of nonstarter men. Abbey finds Mr. Right, and just as things are looking their bleakest for romantically and professionally flailing Magnolia, lightning strikes twice. Koslow's take on behind-the-scenes maneuvering will keep readers turning the pages of her debut, but her soft-focus on glossy magazine publishing (the same mani-pedis, shopping diversions and expensive meals circuit that have been catalogued elsewhere) feels reserved: the villains aren't especially vile, and the goodies are very goodly—call it a red state TheDevil Wears Prada. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Magnolia Gold, formerly ambitious Maggie Goldfarb of Fargo, North Dakota, is now the suave sophisticated editor in chief of Lady magazine. So what if she has no love life? She loves her job and is looking forward to updating the magazine, if only CEO Jock Flanagan approves her new ideas. The bullheaded Jock hardly pays any attention to Magnolia's new plan because the publisher has the "fabulous" idea of turning her beloved magazine into the play toy of the overblown celebrity talk-show-host Bebe Blake. Bebe is a loudmouthed, opinionated woman (sound familiar?) with no magazine experience, and now Magnolia must kowtow to her so she can keep her job. On the heels of The Devil Wears Prada (2003), Koslow presents another dishy and delightful insider's view of the elite in magazine publishing, a subject she is more than qualified to spoof, having been editor in chief of McCall's. Patty Engelmann
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Adult (April 2, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399154159
• ISBN-13: 978-0399154157
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #635,749 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Miles Above Chick-Lit, April 8, 2007

By	Sheri Koones - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

Little Pink Slips is delicious fun. Warning: you will stay up all night reading this novel. Sally Koslow obviously knows the magazine industry from the inside-out. You will cheer on her heroine, Magnolia Gold, as she battles a nut job of a celebrity (who might remind you of a famous TV star), back-stabbing colleagues and the occasional sample sale.

This book is notches above chick-lit. If Edith Wharton dropped in on a women's magazine in 2007, she'd offer the same whip-smart look at the social habits of shrewd, well-paid women who believe in the holy trinity of good hair, good shoes and good bags. Witty, juicy and delicious. You definitely want to read this book.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Book clubs take notice!!!!, April 11, 2007

By	Jackie S. - See all my reviews

At eight months pregnant, I can't drink, I can't smoke, I can't eat sushi, ambien is a no-no and I have to be nice to my husband because he's the one who is going to drive me to the hospital when I go into labor. In short - I have no vices - until now...Little Pink Slips is so deliciously decadent, entertaining, lol funny -- and most importantly wonderfully written - that it's the most I've had since making this baby. I simply can't put it down. I am pulled into every scene - one of my favorites is Chapter six where Magnolia meets BeBe and her go-to "B" for the first time. I felt like I was there at breakfast!!!!!! Warning this is not chick-lit -- more like "Lady Lit"

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best of the Best, May 2, 2007

By	HeyJudy "heyjudy" (East Hampton, NY USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

LITTLE PINK SLIPS is the ultimate insider's story. For years, author Sally Koslow had been the Editor-in-Chief of the venerable "McCall's" magazine. Suddenly, the powers-that-be in the head office decided to turn the publication over to Rosie O'Donnell--who had had no magazine experience--putting Koslow in an inferior position on the masthead. As it would turn out, even that inferior position did not last too long; eventually, of course, neither did Rosie.

LITTLE PINK SLIPS is Koslow's fictionalized version of this segment of her professional life.

While LITTLE PINK SLIPS easily could have disintegrated into a revenge novel, the author does not let that happen. She never is mean in telling this story, much as she may have been tempted to take her swipes. In fact, her Rosie surrogate often seems likeable, even when she's out of control.

Yet this novel is not about media stars, fictional or real. It is about Magnolia Gold, the original editor of the ficticious "Lady" Magazine: about her efforts to keep the magazine's standards high, her attempt to stand up to the loud mouth boss who is brought in above her and, finally, it is about her struggle to resurrect her professional life after she is excessed.

In telling this story, Koslow offers some wonderful glimpses into what it takes to put out a first-class magazine, giving readers a true fly-on-the-wall perspective. Her descriptions of Magnolia's co-workers are hilarious and one cannot help wondering on whom she based some of these characters.

She tells the story with objectivity and thoroughness and with a commendable amount of humor. This humor, while often laugh-out-loud, is especially admirable in light of the fact that the plot mirrors a dark (and very conspicuous) episode in Koslow's own life.

Equally good are the author's insights into upper-class New York life in these early years of the new millennium. She covers so much of the city's rhythms, from the best nursery schools to the best restaurants to the best cooperative apartment buildings to the best sample sales to the best hairdressers....Well, on every level, LITTLE PINK SLIPS is the best of the best.