Customer Reviews

Save Karyn: One Shopaholic's Journey to Debt and Back

5 star:		(79)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

I read this book to gain insight into why Karyn Bosnak became such a phenomenon. It's difficult to understand why her "cyber begging" gathered so much international attention. What she did was unusual at the time, but certainly not unique. Her website was honest and marginally interesting, but hardly worth more than a casual perusal (to me, at least). She had no paid advertising, and by her account, even the free advertising she did (on Craigslist) was very brief, and only at the beginning. Yet *something* caused her to reach the "tipping point," after which the publicity became self-feeding. My conclusion: She experienced a series of fortuitous events (chatty people saw her initial ads, and the right people read what the chatty people said). To be fair, it was not entirely a matter of luck. She came up with an unusual idea and actually DID something about it. Then (and most critically) she had good follow-through (she immediately consented to radio interviews - lots of them, she answered her mail, etc.).

However, I was somewhat surprised to find that despite the enormous amount of international media coverage and millions of hits to her website, in the 20 weeks it took her to pay off her debt, she actually only received $13,328 in donations from 2,718 people. (After that she claims to have quit accepting donations.) A windfall of $13K is nothing to sneeze at, but it seems out of proportion to the enormous amount of attention she got. No doubt she has financially benefited far more from the *story* of her website (through this book, movie deal, and future deals) than she did from the website itself.

The book is actually not as bad as I expected. What it is:

* An interesting tale of "life in the big city" from the perspective of a professional, yet naïve Midwestern girl.
* Relatable for anyone who's ever been overworked in a job they weren't enthusiastic about.
* An honest account of foolish - yet common - overspending habits.
* Conversational and confessional.
* A mildly humorous look at urban single life.
* Inspirational to take charge and fix your life if it's not going the way you want.

What it's not:

* Great literature. Bosnak tells a good story, but she's not a great writer. And some of her naïveté, which I'm sure she thought would come across as charming, actually came across as rather ignorant and uneducated.
* A "how-to" book for people who want to duplicate her success. While she does tell how she made her website and her thought process behind it, this will not do you any good. She experienced a very unlikely turn of events any imitators would almost certainly not come across.
* A guide on how to get out of debt. There are much better books on the subject, and that is WAY beyond the scope of this book. Beyond a few simple recommendations (available on her website), most of her strategies for saving money (making a cup of coffee serve as both breakfast and lunch, for example) are ill-advised (and also available on her website as the "Daily Buck").
* A tale of redemption. Despite her claims to the contrary, I don't think Bosnak really grew much from the experience. She was scared for awhile and lived humbly for a few months, but then her experience was over. She did perhaps get her priorities a little straighter, but her observations about life remain shallow. She had a life-changing experience, but it doesn't seem to have actually changed *her* very much.

Overall, there is not much to recommend this book, but it is not totally without merit, and as long as your expectations are in line with what it actually contains, you won't be disappointed.

I was surprised to find that I enjoyed this funny, quirky book, in which the author recounts how, as a woman in her late twenties with a low six figure job as a television show producer, she still managed to accumulate twenty thousand dollars worth of credit card debt in about a year's time. She did so by charging expensive personal services and designer merchandise. While I thought the author a shallow and silly sort of woman, I have to give her credit for moxie.

When the author found herself suddenly unemployed and saddled with this large debt load, she did not decide to go the bankruptcy route. Instead, she showed ingenuity by creating an interactive website whereby people could send her money to help her get out of debt, if they wished. Her website kept the public posted as to her progress in terms of her debt reduction. Her debt was reduced through donations made by the general public, her sale of her personal belongings on eBay, and whatever money she was able to pay from whatever job she could land.

The author details how, when she moved from her native Chicago to New York City, she got in debt. I found her story to be funny, although the writing is prosaic and somewhat juvenile, at times. It is also hard to believe that these were the antics of a woman in her late twenties. She showed little judgment and virtually no introspection. Still, the author managed to get rid of her debt in a matter of months and land a book and movie deal to boot. So, she is not a total ditz. If one takes this book at face value, one will enjoy this easy, breezy little read.

As for those who stand in judgment of the author and her frivolous accumulation of debt, keep in mind that she paid every last penny of her debt. She just chose a somewhat novel and imaginative way in which to do so. I suspect that those who are most irked by her success and the way in which she got rid of her debt, are those who only wish that they had thought of it first.

I liked this book in many ways. Karyn is an appealing person despite her shops-till-she-drops habit. And in many ways her single in the city tale is far more realistic and interesting than a lot of the chic lit out there. Her issues with work (too much of it), boys (inattentive, potentially gay, etc.) and over-spending (and HOW) ring true.

However, it does ultimately have flaws in two areas.

Firs, while Karyn created a web phenomenon and led an interesting life, she isn't much of a writer. Lots of "anywhos" and shifting between past and present within the same paragraph. Some stories (the rodent in her bathroom, her dating a guy named Brad) are funny; other seem self-indulgent. To some extent, this is mimics her website, so maybe this is okay. But she seems like a smarter person than this, so I kept wondering if this book would've been better with a ghost writer.

Also, while she ingeniously pulled herself out of debt, Karyn doesn't seem to have analyzed what happened very much, or to have learned from it. I was expecting more insight into why she thought she over spent like that, and how her life was different now that she is out of debt.

I don't begrudge Karyn asking strangers for money-it's a great idea in its way-but she seems more interested in having her story made into a movie than in figuring out how to move on and live life without charging $600 coats and hundreds of dollars worth of cosmetics.

That story would've been more interesting, and I wish she had filled us in! How DO you change from a shopaholic to a frugal gal?

The story of Karyn Bosnak is truly a cautionary tale with a hollywood happy ending slapped on for good measure. Or is it a happy ending? We really don't know since this young woman is still at an early stage in her business life.

Like so many other young people she moved to New York and didn't properly consider the actual cost of living versus her salary. As a result she ended up with thousands of dollars in credit card debt and when she lost her job there was no way to pay the bills. The story is a familiar one as credit card debt has become bronzed into the American way of life. With low interest rates, play now and pay lots of interest later has become all the rage.

Karyn's solution to reducing her debt involved building a website, auctioning off some of her most expensive belongings and begging folks for a couple of bucks to pay her debts. Thanks to a mention in the Sunday New York Times, Karyn's website became a hit and as a result she got her book deal and got some hardworking people to pay off her credit card debt for her.

I have a serious problem with this type of approach. You spend beyond your means and then use a website to beg people for money? What does that teach anyone? Are we to expect that every time we overstep our financial means that someone else should swoop in and save us? This is not a financial action plan but a recipe for disaster. In fact I'd be willing to bet that Karyn learned very little from the whole experience besides the fact that if you ask nicely enough and get a write up in the NY Times that other folks will come to your rescue. I wonder if any of the people who gave money realized that they weren't saving Karyn from the big, bad credit card companies, but merely paying for all of her nights out and useless expensive lingerie.

As a person who has dug himself out of thousands in credit card debt I can tell you that you learn much more when you take responsibility for yourself and pay your bills through hard work. So save yourself a few bucks and take to heart the following common sense: Create a budget for yourself, live within your means and you won't need to be saved.

While shamelessly begging on the Internet,
Karen would occasionaly have a nice meal at a restaurant.
Her 'tip' for the rest of us, is to simply not leave a tip!
It's OK, you're on a budget!

So sad for the waitperson.. but Karyn is smarter at watching her money now!

Blechhh.
I need to read some Jehovah's Witness pamphlets now, to cleanse my palate.

( I am not now, nor have I ever been, a waitperson )

-
regards,
Ra

How did this girl get a book deal? Her story is somewhat interesting but she lacks the ability to write well. Bosnak is excessively fond of the exclamation point and feels it necessary to use it every second or third sentence. Where was her editor???? I am not critical of the author because of what she did but I do think she should have gotten someone to ghost write this thing.

If you are a compulsive saver who couldn't imagine being carrying a balance on a single credit card, this book will disgust you. But if you are like most of us, who have found themselves loaded down with the weight of consumer debt due to circumstance and spending habits, you will love this story. Karyn pulls herself out of her self-made pit with wit, humor, and a great attitude. I read the book in two days and loved it the whole way through. I highly recommend this...especially before you go on one more shopping trip with a wallet full of plastic. It just might make you reconsider.

I thought it would be hard to feel sorry for an upper-middle-class chick who makes near six figures and blows it all on Fendi bags and BCBG tees -- but I was wrong. I found myself identifying with Karyn way more than I thought I would in this entertaining, hilarious, and often sad first-person tale of consumerism and search for identity. I shared in her feelings of euphoria as she shopped the streets of NYC, and I felt for her when she hit rock bottom -- and I rooted for her when she started a website and solicited strangers for donations to bail her out.

If you've enjoyed any of the fictional "Shopaholic" stories by Sophie Kinsella, you'll love "Save Karyn."

I never thought I'd really read a true-account of a "Becky Bloomwood" (the main character in the "Shopaholic" series) but Karyn was most definitely it! It was a creative idea, setting up a website to get herself out of debt. I admire her persistence, and her determination not to declare bankruptcy. This book was a lovely light-hearted read. I couldn't put it down! This is definitely a great reading choice for any fans of the "Shopaholic" series. Five stars!

After reading the majority of reviews of this book, I think people have missed the point. This is not an ethnography of overspending in culture or a self help book, it is just a witty story of how a women plunged herself into debt and found a unique way to pull herself out. She herself admits her debt was a series of dumb choices, but I'm sure many will see themselves or a friend in many of her actions and silly rationalizing of over spending. So if you want to laugh with her, and congratulate yourself for knowing were to stop with your spending, this is a fun read.