The Devil Wears Prada

By: Lauren Weisberger

Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne

Length: 14 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

A delightfully dishy novel about the all-time most impossible boss in the history of impossible bosses.

Andrea Sachs, a small-town girl fresh out of college, lands the job “a million girls would die for.” Hired as the assistant to Miranda Priestly, the high-profile, fabulously successful editor of Runway magazine, Andrea finds herself in an office that shouts Prada! Armani! Versace! at every turn, a world populated by impossibly thin, heart-wrenchingly stylish women and beautiful men clad in fine-ribbed turtlenecks and tight leather pants that show off their lifelong dedication to the gym.

With breathtaking ease, Miranda can turn each and every one of these hip sophisticates into a scared, whimpering child. The Devil Wears Prada gives a rich and hilarious new meaning to complaints about “The Boss from Hell.”

Narrated in Andrea’s smart, refreshingly disarming voice, it traces a deep, dark, devilish view of life at the top only hinted at in gossip columns and over Cosmopolitans at the trendiest cocktail parties. From sending the latest, not-yet-in-stores Harry Potter to Miranda’s children in Paris by private jet, to locating an unnamed antique store where Miranda had at some point admired a vintage dresser, to serving lattes to Miranda at precisely the piping hot temperature she prefers, Andrea is sorely tested each and every day - and often late into the night with orders barked over the phone.

She puts up with it all by keeping her eyes on the prize: a recommendation from Miranda that will get Andrea a top job at any magazine of her choosing. As things escalate from the merely unacceptable to the downright outrageous, however, Andrea begins to realize that the job a million girls would die for may just kill her. And even if she survives, she has to decide whether or not the job is worth the price of her soul.

©2003 Lauren Weisberger (P)2003 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Miranda's behavior is so insanely over-the-top that it's a gas to see what she'll do next, and to try to guess which incidents were culled from real life." (Amazon.com)
"Weisberger has penned a comic novel that manages to rise to the upper echelons of the chick-lit genre." (Publishers Weekly)

Book over movie

Loved the movie. Until I read the book. Don't think I'll be able to watch the movie without comparing the 2.

It was better than the movie.

While I liked the story overall, and really wish the movie was the same ( I think it would have been more interesting, especially to see the original Lilly and the original ending....I don't want to spoil it for others), the narrator's voicing of the male characters grated on my nerves. Especially since her boyfriend, father, and Christian sounded exactly alike; it made it creepy.
Also, the actual singing...my GOD that was annoying.
Either don't do the voices or at least get men for the male characters.
Overall, though, I liked it .

A Really Great Listen!

I listened to The Devil Wears Prada on a roadtrip this weekend and it really made the time fly by. It gave me a glimpse into a world I NEVER want any part of. It shows you just how far some people will and will not go to get the things that they think they want in life. And even then, are those things really what they want afterall? Rachael Leigh Cook reads the book and she did a FANTASTIC job. I think her voice made the book even better. There is some foul language in the book so it is not a good listen if you have young ones with you. I had to wait until they were sleeping. :)

Overall, its a really good listen. If you like "chic" lit you should really enjoy The Devil Wears Prada.

Mandy

Adored it

I absolutely loved this book! I had a hard time stopping the iPod on this one and would often "sneak" it at work. At the end, I immediatedly started to relisten to the last couple of chapters. I loved waiting to hear what Miranda would ask for next. I may even buy the book for my collection.

Outstanding narration

Most likely I would have enjoyed this book far less if I had read it rather than listened to it. The narrator helped soften the underlying whiny perspective of the author. All of her voices were quite engaging and excellent, especially Miranda's.
I like to listen to a lot of spy thrillers and this was a welcome change of pace. A great listen while driving or ironing.

The Devil Wears Prada was hilarious

This was a terrfically funny book and very well read.

So much fun

What a fun book. Great timing and pace, I loved it, actually laughing out loud with regularity. The name "Andrea" will never be the same to you again. Listen to this sharp book and you'll know what I mean.

Liked the movie bettter, This is uncommon

I thought the book was good, but after watching the movie I was either expecting something similar or a few moments similar, but it was not like the movie at all, which I liked a great deal. Its not very often I like the movie more than the book, in fact I can probably count on one hand this happens

I think if I read this before I saw the movie it might be different, because the antagonist & sections of the book contain great symbolism, irony, & slow motion car wreck. The reader was not horrible but u really can't compare to Streep... plus there were parts added to the movie that were highly motivating & characters were even developed more than the book, I believe they combined multiple characters to create one particular one in the movie... I guess it is worth the read, but since I've seen the movie so many times it doesn't hold the same, I don't catch all the literary strengths I would normally see sans the movie

Anne by any other name...

What did you love best about The Devil Wears Prada?

The narrator sounds like Anne Hathaway --she plays Andy in the movie --so the two really go together.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Miranda. She's funny and played by Meryl Streep....

Any additional comments?

Loved this book!

Solid entertainment

A very entertaining story that moved at a decent pace through the 8 to 10 hours. I am anxious to check out the movie now that I've "read" the book! : )