She Who Shops [Paperback]

Joanne Skerrett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 7, 2005

Every girl needs a little black dress, a great pair of shoes - and a good friend to kick her well-toned derriere when she starts losing her head...Weslee Dunster is one sister who has always been about the practical side, earning her way to Boston University through good, old-fashioned hard work. Who needs Prada when you've got brains, right? Wrong! With her GAP khakis and humble background, Weslee's no match for the wealthy New Englanders who seem to look at her like she's stepped out of a Sears catalogue. Athletic scholarship? Immigrant parents? Outlet stores? I don't think so! The women in Wes's new sphere treat shopping like a contact sport, and they never met a friend they didn't want to trash as soon as her back was turned. And the brothers will snub you for having skin that's a shade past cafe au lait or an accent that's one generation from Jamaica. The queen bee of this rarefied world is pretty, spoiled party girl Lana Brown. Lana's sure all Wes needs to fit in and become her best friend is a makeover, and she knows just the places to shop for it. Now, caught up in a hectic lifestyle filled with designer clothes, expensive highlights, finger-aching bling, air kissing, fine-looking players, lies, betrayals, and other things her once-sensible life didn't demand, Wes is in for the ride of her life - one that could have her crashing and burning...unless she can figure out the rules of the game and how to break them.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An entertaining story of friendship, love and romance."

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Kensington (June 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758208553
• ISBN-13: 978-0758208552
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,312,356 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joanne Skerrett was born in Roseau, Dominica in the Eastern Caribbean. She moved with her family to the United States as a teenager. She has worked on various news desks for several newspapers, including the Boston Globe and Chicago Tribune. She is the author of She Who Shops, Sugar vs. Spice and Letting Loose, published by Kensington Publishing Corp. She is also the author of My Best White Friend and Abraham's Treasure, recently released as eBooks on Kindle. She lives in Boston.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Will new shoes mend a broken heart?, July 16, 2005

By 

The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (RAWSISTAZ.com and BlackBookReviews.net) - See all my reviews

This review is from: She Who Shops (Paperback)

Six months after her lover Michael, of five years, leaves her claiming he's too young to settle down, Weslee moves from Chicago to Boston to finish her MBA. She wants to put distance between her and Michael and give her heart a chance to heal. Among her new classmates is Lana, a wealthy young woman who loves to party. There are things about Lana that Weslee doesn't particularly care for, such as her sharp tongue and her snobbishness, but Lana introduces her to a whole new world that includes friends and up-scale parties on Martha's Vineyard. Lana also introduces Weslee to upscale dressing and shows her how to buy expensive, name brand clothing. As a result, Weslee becomes addicted to shopping.

Weslee meets several handsome men and one of them is Lana's cousin, Duncan. She also meets William, a friend of Lana's, and finds him attractive as well, but puts him on hold in favor of Duncan's charm, grace and good looks. In a very short time, she's head over heels in love and she begins to spend more and more money on clothes and shoes. Her carefully planned school budget takes a huge hit.

Joanne Skerrett has written a wonderfully suspenseful love story about a young woman who has a tendency to rush into relationships before she really gets to know the man. In addition, when things begin to go sour, she doesn't hesitate to blame herself. SHE WHO SHOPS is stunningly realistic and all of us have known someone like Weslee, or have even behaved this way ourselves. It is a book that can entice anyone who likes finger biting suspense.

Reviewed by alice Holman
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent portrait of all sides of Boston and a great read, June 22, 2005

By 

Cathie Reeds - See all my reviews

This review is from: She Who Shops (Paperback)

Not many authors write about Boston in a way that gives you its full flavor--from Copley Square to the heart of Dorchester, Roxbury, and Mattapan, you come away from this book with both an intimate knowledge of its central characters and of the diversity of Boston's communities.

This novel is fun and engaging but don't let the "chiclet" packaging fool you. There's some serious themes in there as well and the main character ends up having to take a break from shopping designer labels and do some deep soul searching about who she is, what she wants out of life, and who she wants to spend her life with.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Tried, tired, and true, December 5, 2005

By 

ESQ - See all my reviews

This review is from: She Who Shops (Paperback)

Overall I found the book to be an interesting read. The story flowed well, however I found it to be a bit too cliche. Its the typical story about someone who gets caught up in a whirldwind and then must realize what things in life are really important. There are already a million stories out there along this vein and this is not unique in any way. The main twist is that this book attempts to delve further into the lives of the black upper middle class. I do question the author's actual experiences with the black upper class. she chose to develop the character of Lana along the lines of the typical rich, spoiled brat. While there are members of the black upper class that are like this, the author seems to have missed the ones who are equally as ambitious as the main character Weslee. I feel that the author;s unfair critique of the black upper class detracted some from the book which is why I gave it only three stars. Perhaps next time the author will come up with a more unique storyline besides what is already tried, tired, and true.