The Best of Friends

Martha and Me

De: Mariana Pasternak

Narrado por: Karen Saltus

Set in a world of luxury and power, this is the tell-all story of two remarkable women and a friendship that changed both their lives forever.

For more than two decades, Mariana Pasternak and Martha Stewart were nearly inseparable. They first met over a garden gate in Westport, Connecticut - two suburban wives wedded to successful men but with grand aspirations of their own. Their bond only deepened after their marriages ended in divorce. Struggling as a single mother, but drawn into a seductive world of privilege and adventure, Pasternak watched with admiration as her friend built an empire that would make her one of the richest women in America.

A European émigré with sophisticated tastes, Pasternak helped to smooth Stewart’s rough edges, while Stewart drew Pasternak into a rarefied world, where together they navigated the sometimes hilarious and often difficult challenges of being single. The depth of their friendship not only benefited them both but also influenced how they defined themselves, through good times and bad.

Friendship between women is never simple, and this one was no exception. With Stewart’s new-found success and Pasternak’s zest for adventure, the two women’s developing friendship was based on their mutual quest for wonder and discovery. They rode horses through the desert dunes of Egypt, hiked the winding Inca Trail to the mysterious Machu Picchu, paddled at night in dugout canoes through the Amazonian jungle. They toasted the good life with thin-stemmed champagne glasses and sipped “jade dew” green tea in Martha’s Turkey Hill kitchen. This was no ordinary life.

Over time, money, men, and the arrogance of wealth frayed the bonds they had built so carefully for over 20 years. The final break came when Pasternak was called as a witness in the high-profile trial that brought about Stewart’s conviction and prison sentence.

Pasternak’s deeply personal memoir tells the story of their friendship with honesty and candor, reflecting on the power of such intense relationships to change our lives, and the devastating aftermath when they end.

©2010 Mariana Pasternak (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers

Martyr

This woman lives in a fantasy world. She drones on and on about what a wonderful person she is and what a wonderful friend she was to Martha. She refers to "moguls" and "celebrities" but never divulges their names. This book was a self-fulfilling and selfish attempt to make herself look good. The only positive is that it allows the reader some insight into Martha's lifestyle and the people she has shared her life with. I became ANGRY many times while listening to this pathetic martyr.

Is she kidding ?

Holy Cow....talk about being glued to someones hip & being afraid to speak up for fear of losing a 'friendship'.
Mariana Pasternak overlooked despicable traits in her' friend' Martha Stewart because she so enjoyed the life she was living. The whole thing made me ill.
This life of privilege and snobbery and feeling entitled, and constantly excusing it all to come back for more.OH MY. From the ridiculous relishing of drinking tea from special tea leaves to buying up houses and the fancy schmancy parties. So self absorbed.
The reader, while her voice was lovely, only made all of it so much more nauseating. The saddest part....you can tell that Mariana still wishes she were friends with Stewart and only through Stewarts undoing did it fall apart...NOT because Mariana was able to ever stand up for herself & tell Stewart how disgustingly she behaved.
As the story droned on and on I kept thinking...damn...END ALREADY.