Farewell, Dorothy Parker Trade paperback - 2013

New York: Berkley Books, 2013. First Berkley trade paperback edition [stated] First printing thus [stated]. Trade paperback. Good/No DJ issued. Ilina Simeonova (cover art). Format is approximately 5. 125 inches by 8 inches. [14], 356 pages. Signed copy sticker on front cover. Signed by the author on the fep. Red mark on the upper right corner of fep. Red marks at bottom edge. Reader's Guide included at the back. Ellen Meister started her career as a copywriter, working on staff and then later as a freelancer. In 2006 she published her first book. Her novels include THE ROOFTOP PARTY (Mira 2021), LOVE SOLD SEPARATELY (Mira 2020), DOROTHY PARKER DRANK HERE (Putnam 2015), FAREWELL, DOROTHY PARKER (Putnam 2013), THE OTHER LIFE (Putnam 2011), THE SMART ONE (HarperCollins 2008) and SECRET CONFESSIONS OF THE APPLEWOOD PTA (HarperCollins 2006). Some career highlights include appearances on NPR, being selected for the prestigious Indie Next List by the American Booksellers Association, foreign language translations of her books, and receiving a TV series option from HBO. Her nonfiction has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal blog, Huffington Post, Daily Beast, Long Island Woman, Writer's Digest and more. She teaches creative writing privately and at Long Island University Hutton House, and also offer editorial and ghostwriting services. When it comes to movie reviews, critic Violet Epps is a powerhouse voice. But that's only because she's learned to channel her literary hero Dorothy Parker, the most celebrated and scathing wit of the twentieth century. If only Violet could summon that kind of strength in her personal life. Violet visits the Algonquin Hotel in an attempt to find inspiration from the hallowed dining room where Dorothy Parker and so many other famous writers of the 1920s traded barbs, but she gets more than she bargained for when Parker's feisty spirit rematerializes. An irreverent ghost with problems of her own—including a refusal to cross over to the afterlife—Mrs. Parker helps Violet face her fears, becoming in turn mentor and tormentor...and ultimately, friend. Derived from a Kirkus review: The ghost of the eponymous 20th-century wit visits a present-day movie reviewer who lacks Parker's backbone in this mix of comedy and tear-jerker. Violet displays a pungent wit as a writer of reviews, but in her personal life, she's a wimp, and her paralyzing anxiety may cost her. After the death of her older sister and son-in-law in a car accident, Violet is in a custody battle for her 13-year-old niece, Delaney. Delaney wants to live with Violet, not her obnoxious grandparents, but Violet has recently failed to stand up for herself in front of the judge. She's also finding it difficult to break up with a boyfriend she actively dislikes. Then, she visits the Algonquin Hotel and ends up walking out with a guest book signed by all the literary luminaries. When she opens the books, she releases the spirit of Dorothy Parker, who has chosen not to follow "the white light," preferring to hang around drinking and making clever witticisms. Dorothy befriends Violet, giving her advice and occasionally literally taking over her body, causing Violet to behave uncharacteristically to say the least. Soon, Violet has dumped the boyfriend and come on strong to Michael, the African-American ex-Marine Kung Fu trainer she has a secret crush on. She also refuses to allow herself to be intimidated by the editorial assistant who has edited her work without permission. And she decides to fight harder for Delaney. But can Dorothy's helpfulness go too far? As self-empowerment romantic comedies go, this perfectly pleasant one hits all the marks.