So 5 Minutes Ago: A Novel [Abridged, Audiobook] [Audio CD]

Hilary De Vries (Author), Laura Hamilton (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 12, 2004

The Devil Wears Prada on the red carpet: a hugely entertaining and comic first novel that offers a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the Hollywood publicity machine, told with acerbic humor and a gossipy, insider's edge.

Alex Davidson is a thirtysomething celebrity publicist for a down-at-heels Los Angeles PR firm known for taking on clients whose careers have crashed and burned. A professional hand-holder and spinmeister, she’s one notch above a nanny on the Hollywood food chain.

L.A. is already losing its luster in Alex’s eyes when her firm is bought out by the hottest agency in town. Will it mean massive layoffs or a chance at a big promotion? In between signing a new client (a once-hot-now-not actor just out of rehab) and wondering if one of the partners is putting the moves on her, Alex grows wary of her new boss, a sharklike exec who's forcing out Alex’s old boss under suspicious circumstances. Is there anything she can do to save her and her boss's jobs, and maybe right some wrongs against women in Hollywood along the way?

Packed with razor-sharp humor and featuring a winning protagonist, So 5 Minutes Ago will satisfy even the most hard-to-pleaser celebriholics who long to find out what goes on after a star steps off the red carpet.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Containing all the guilty pleasure of a fluffy beach read, this lighthearted debut novel from veteran Hollywood journalist de Vries offers celebrity-fixated fans a humorous, insider's look at the less than glamorous underbelly of Hollywood. Alex Davidson, a New York transplant and 30-something divorcée, hates her job as a publicist, even though she's "frighteningly good" at it. With one-third of her clients "gay, in rehab, or seriously twisted," Alex fears her job is on the line after the agency she works for is bought out by a firm, aptly named BIG. While poking fun at both real and fictionalized celebrities and Hollywood bigwigs may not be a stretch for de Vries, reader Hamilton perfectly captures the author's sarcastic tone and takes her (sometimes painfully) hip dialogue to another level with her vast cache of accents and attitude. Hamilton also lets somewhat clichéd characters like Alex's attractive, gossipy, gay assistant and her has-been client, Troy Madden, shine through more clearly.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Hilary de Vries is an award-winning journalist and author who has covered Hollywood for more than a decade. She is a regular contributor to The New York Times and has written for Vogue, Rolling Stone, W, Vanity Fair and the Los Angeles Times. She lives in Los Angeles. This is her first novel.

Laura Hamilton is a two-time recipient of ALA Notable Recording Awards and numerous Publisher Weekly 'Listen Up' Awards for her numerous audiobook narrations. Ms. Hamilton has also done video and radio voice-over work for such companies as AT&T Broadband, the Chicago Bulls, Busch Gardens and Chicago's world famous Field Museum. She lives in Chicago.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Listen & Live Audio; Abridged edition (January 12, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593160224
• ISBN-13: 978-1593160227
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,442,153 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great narration...., June 22, 2005

By 

Chick-lit fan "A reader" (Buffalo, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: So 5 Minutes Ago: A Novel (Audio CD)

This book has gotten some moxed reviews, but I found it entertaining. However, I am reviewing it as an audiobook. It is fun to guess who the actors are supposed to be- "The Pheonix" is totally Cher, "Shaggy and Scooby" seem to be Ellen DeGeneres and Anne Heche, and And Carla Selena, aka "C.Sa." obviously is like J. Lo. The abridgement is also very good, and didn't leave out important story gaps.

The content of the book is pretty decent, but the narrator does a great job going from vioce to voice, giving each character a unique sound or accent so there is no confusion as to who is speaking. Her Southern accent is spot on. A good book on CD!

1.0 out of 5 stars I wish Amazon offered a money-back guarantee, June 21, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: So 5 Minutes Ago: A Novel (Audio CD)

Alex is an unlikable, self-centered, vain woman who alternates between "poor me" rants and "it's my way or the highway" demands on her assistant (who, beyond my comprehension, is actually her friend and doesn't seem to mind her condescending ways).

This is a Hollywood-focused attempt at the insight offered in "The Devil Wears Prada", but, unfortunately, falls short. Instead of being acerbic, it's just whiney; instead of being comic, it's just sad. The good thing is, when I was bored enough to "tune out", tuning back in brought me closer to the end (I finished out of devotion to my book club).

If you want an insider's glimpse of Hollywood, view "The Player" of "LA Story" instead. This book doesn't deliver.