Goodreads Mobile | see what your friends are reading

Dec 17, 2009

Christina rated it:

Dear Candace,
Please stop writing female characters with no depth of soul. I am a women and yet capable of thought. I am capable of getting a job and supporting myself. I am capable of dating people because I like them and not because they are rich. I am capable of having friends who I don't back-stab.
If you were a man I would accuse you of hating women, however, I believe I will have to look for another excuse for your writing.
In the meantime please cease and desist.
Lov

1 comment like (13 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2009

Karen added it

Do yourself a favor and NEVER READ THIS. I give it zero stars.
This book was the worst piece of crap ever written. I have a problem when it comes to books in that I have to finish reading a book once I start it. I hate myself for finishing this one. I'm dumber for having read it and will never, ever read a Candace Bushnell book again.
Awful.

1 comment like (9 people liked it)

Aug 08, 2008

Jessica rated it:

This book is completely devoid of a single redeeming quality.

What a terrible waste of my time. What a terrible waste of trees and ink.

I only finished because I was hoping that, in a surprising twist, Janey would fall off of a cliff, or get lynched, or die in some horrible, disfiguring accident.

Sadly, this did not happen. Since you now know this, don't bother reading this book.

2 comments like (7 people liked it)

Jan 09, 2008

Danielle rated it:

Reading this book was painful and horrifying. I was astonished to find that anyone could think up so many shallow topics and characters on which to write. However, I found myself compelled to finish the book, hoping all along that Janie, the main character, would eventually do the right thing. I did, however, find some of the character names, locations, corporations and New York-isms both clever and interesting.

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Mar 04, 2008

Michelle rated it:

I loved Sex & The City, so I am hoping that this one will be good too. However, after reading the first chapter, I am already disgusted with the main character. And unfortunately, I am the type of person that has to finish a book once I start reading it...so we'll see.

A few days later...Okay, I gave it another try and gave up. I have no desire to finish this book and will not recommend it. Stories about the fashion world and the glamorous life of the rich and famous can be tastef More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 14, 2007

Tonya rated it:

Coming from a gal who normally loves shallow chick-lit (think the "Shopaholic" series, "Bergdorf Blondes", "Devil Wears Prada", etc. etc...) "Trading Up" didn't even serve my only purpose for it: to be a mindless beach read while on vacation. I struggled through about 60 or 70 dull, tedious pages before I finally gave up on it. Fortunately, I found it in B&N's bargain bin for only 5 or 6 bucks. Unfortunately, I also wasted another 5 or 6 bucks on "L More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 06, 2008

Samantha rated it:

I like this much better than 4 Blondes. It's a pseudo-sequel, expanding on one of the short stories. The main character is almost pitiable, and I found myself often wishing she would just give up and be a "normal person," but like a train wreck, I couldn't just look away.

I've known people who attempted this sort of lifestyle, so I guess that's why the story held my interest.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 16, 2012

Tammi rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like

Aug 02, 2011

Laura rated it:

I cannot describe the extent that I dislike Candace Bushnell’s character, Janey Wilcox. She is the only protagonist I have willed to die.
My stomach bubbles in fury with what Ms. Bushnell put me through with this devastating waste of paper. It isn’t a book, it’s a door stopper.
Janey is the face of today’s reality stars. A former model, Janey gets meaning from her “existence” by climbing social ladders. Aiming to become a movie producer, Janey is constantly buffeted by past acquaintances More...

0 comments like

May 20, 2011

Cyndy rated it:

I received Candace Bushnell's novel Trading Up in a care package from friends when I was on bedrest during my third pregnancy. Knowing that I had just discovered Sex and the City on DVD, one of my girlfriends assumed that I'd like reading this book. At the time, I was reading at least one and sometimes two books a day, and yet it took me three days to read Trading Up. The following explains why.

::: The Premise :::

Trading Up opens with Janey Wilcox, a character introduced in B More...

0 comments like

Jul 13, 2009

Erin rated it:

You know, all day at work I am reminded about how shallow mankind is. For exanple: 1) since I am not one of the "beautiful" people I am not treated as nicely and will never make as much money no matter how hard I work or how smart I am. 2) Since there are always people willing to sell themselves out for a buck- whether it is morally, spiritually, or environmentally- it seems like we will never make progress as a society. 3) Postponing short-term fulfillment for the greater good long-te More...

0 comments like

Nov 08, 2011

Mirah rated it:

I tried to read '4 Blondes' years ago and it was too horrible to finish. I read 'Lipstick Jungle' and 'One Fifth Avenue' last year and was actually surprised by how much I enjoyed them. But, with 'Trading Up' I'm disappointed again. Janey Wilcox is a manipulative, selfish, hootchie who really has no redeeming qualities. She only wants to have 'relationships' with people who can some how move her ahead; she even treats her sister poorly and has no remorse about it. With every page I kept thin More...

0 comments like

Jun 21, 2008

Erika rated it:

Fun, totally underrated, and maybe misunderstood. This is a contemporary update of The House of Mirth, which makes it a creative, ambitious project. The plot mirrors that of the Wharton novel until the end, where the shameless, LA-based, culture of entertainment allows the protagonist to survive her exclusion from rule-bound New York society. Yes, that protagonist is shallow and bitchy, but she has her demons, and Lily Bart was hardly without shortcomings.

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Oct 19, 2009

Eleni rated it:

"Trading Up"

All Janey Wilcox wants is to be on top. Climb up the social ladder and become Manhattan's elite. However, in NYC, its not as easy as it seems and no one is ever good looking enough, rich enough, or talented enough to stay atop the social ladder.
Many unexpected forces in the end, after many problems occurring, threaten to bring Janey down. Will she achieve her dream of reaching the apex of the social hierarchy or will she fail miserably?

-Persona More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 03, 2009

Regina rated it:

I love all things Sex and the City; I thought One Fifth Avenue was a worthwhile read; Lipstick Jungle was slightly less entertaining and I wasn't a fan of 4 Blondes. I had skipped Trading Up when it came out a few years ago, but decided to pick it up in paperback form. I understand that Bushnell is making biting remarks on both NY and LA society, but does she have to do it in such a shallow, boring manner? She tries to illicit SOME sympathy for the main character, Janey, through a mother that More...

0 comments like

Nov 30, 2010

Angela rated it:

Bushnell's characters in "Trading Up" were very well developed. I enjoyed reading about the intricacies of each of them. I also enjoyed the layout of the book. Everytime I thought I had Janey kind of figured out, Bushnell threw in a flashback, or a version of a scene from someone elses point of view, and I'd have a new thought on Janey.

While Janey wasn't the most likeable character, she was interesting to read about; almost seducing, which is exactly how her character is More...

0 comments like

Sep 24, 2010

Mary Clare rated it:

Janey Wilcox a Victoria secret model will do anything to advance her position in society, including sleeping with whoever has the most money. This has been the lifestyle that Janey has always led since her modeling days in Paris as a young teenager. A couple of summers ago Janey was commissioned to write a screenplay for her current Beau Comstock Dibble for $30,000. The only problem was janey never delivered the screenplay but she thought her sex acts were payment enough. Fast forward one year l More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 03, 2008

Fran rated it:

Goodreads needs a new bookshelf category: "couldn't bear to continue reading."

Why would anyone want to spend hundreds of pages with unlikable, unfunny Janey Wilcox, even if she is a blond, beautiful Victoria's Secret model? I would be a million times happier rereading _Cranford_.... so that's what I'm going to do!

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Oct 09, 2011

Karah rated it:

Well, technically, I marked this as "read" but that is for my personal "record keeping" only--because I do NOT need to pick this book up again. After about the first 150 pages, I put it down, having felt like I already wasted too many evenings reading this book. I wanted to read another Bushnell book and this was the first one I grabbed but man, I just couldn't stomach it.

The plot revolves around a selfish, vain, model living in NYC and the "in-crowd" More...

0 comments like

Mar 01, 2011

Ellisa rated it:

*Rating Factors*
Did I like the book: Yes
Would I read it again: No
Will I recommend it to friends: No
Was there anything special about the book: No

You can pretty much save your time and skip this book. It had way too much language and questionable material to be entertaining, and the main character (Janie) was very unlikable. That said, I did like the book and the stories about a segment of people I will never be able to relate to or understand. Also, I was impre More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 28, 2009

Brookelindsey rated it:

I loved Sex & The City so I figured I would love Trading Up right? WRONG! I started this book while on vacation in February 2008 and I still haven't finished the thing in fact I'm probably only about 2/3 of the way through it, have read 4 other books in the meantime and probably have no intentions of picking it up ever again. It is so slow, so boring, bottom line it just goes nowhere. Janey is immature, self absorbed, desperate to have a big hollywood movie career and sex crazed, I just summ More...

0 comments like

Feb 28, 2010

Sharal rated it:

This is the second Bushnell book I've tried that I am going to have to give up on. The best I can figure is that her characters just don't appeal to me. As a reader, I want to root for the characters in the story, especially the central leading character. I want to see them win, have the happy ending...twice now I have found the characters lacking all redeeming qualities. The main character, Janey, is completely shallow and materialistic who marries a man she doesn't really love just for the sak More...

0 comments like

May 13, 2009

Carrie rated it:

I read a lot of reviews on here before I read this book. I was almost talked out of reading it because they were so negative. But I had already bought it at goodwill, so I went ahead and read it.

The character this book is based on is in fact a horrible, shallow, nasty person, but I found myself liking the book anyway. Even if it was ridiculous and I couldn't believe what was being said, I kept on reading, and wanting to read more.

Yes, she's horrible, and no, I am n More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 30, 2009

Amanda rated it:

I debated give this a two star or a three star rating. I wanted to keep reading to see what would happen but my disgust with the main character made me drop the rating down to two. I don't think I have ever hated a protagonist so much in my life! She was self-centered, conniving, and cruel. She had no redeeming qualities, and in the end she learned nothing. I found the excerpt from the novel that gave some background on her life, and why she is the way she is, interesting. However, it came to la More...

0 comments like

Apr 14, 2009

Penelope Naomi rated it:

There is a mini prequel to the main character in "4 Blondes" but *only* read the first part of that book if you want the back story to "Trading Up" otherwise, it's a waste of time to read the other book. You get to know her better in this one and it's an ok book. Although it's not the best book in the word I did want to finish reading it but.. I don't think I'd ever read it again. I would not consider it a 'must read book' and was therefore disappointed. The ending is also pr More...

0 comments like

Feb 07, 2012

Cassie rated it:

I love Candace Bushnell, there can be few more intelligent authors working in the U.S. today, and Trading Up is one of her best. I'd say that this tale of a lingerie model's attempts to claw her way into the upper echelons of New York society reminds me of Edith Wharton, if I wasn't afraid that might make it sound a tad dull and worthy. Whereas it's sparklingly funny and wonderfully observant. A long flashback towards the end of the novel throws things off-kilter a bit, but otherwise this is hea More...

0 comments like

Jul 10, 2011

Lindsay rated it:

This book was a waste of time. It was a reminder why I try to avoid chick lit novels. I think this is maybe the 3rd time I've tried reading it, and forced myself to get through it. First, it was WAY to long, as were the chapters. And if the author was trying to make the main character Janey likeable, she was WAY off. It follows the story of 33 year old Janey Wilcox who is a stuck up Victoria's Secret model who thinks everything is about her and marries a rich man she doesn't even love, because a More...

0 comments like

Sep 15, 2011

Jessuina rated it:

I really wish I had read some of the reviews here before I started reading this book.
This book has been sitting on one of my bookshelves for 2 years now. I bought it at a garage sale with a few other books and since I like chick lit I thought I might enjoy it.

I have never seen/read Sex and the City and if those characters are anything like Janey Wilcox, I will never watch that show.
It's a long book, which I wouldn't mind if it weren't such a total bore.
Editing would have More...

0 comments like

Apr 03, 2010

January rated it:

I really enjoyed this book. If you like Sex and the City then you should like this. It is very similar. This being said, this book is not for everyone. If you are somewhat of a prude or if sex bothers you in ANY way don't bother reading this book. There is a lot of sex in it. I think it is a fun book and as long as you don't take it too seriously you will enjoy it. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to any of my friends...just not my mother (which is funny because she is the one that bought it More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 12, 2008

Katy rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

1 comment like