ridiculous displays of wealth like the Kardashian wedding
354075
The O.D. is what I've heard described (with referernce to another book) as an "Ah! book."  It articulates our fears, which have grown with the 21st century, and proposes a solution which I think is sensible, if revolutionary. I'm not going to recaptilate the plot of this novel, because it should be read directly.

I will state upfront that I am related to the author by marriage; that for thirty years I have known his beliefs to be long and deeply held, and also deeply studied, considered, and researched. I will also state that most of my working life was spent in a literary agency, during which I read a lot of novels, and shepherded some of them into publication, so I hope you will believe that when I say I was hooked by this one by page 50, I was hooked. I will also acknowledge that I am one of the USA's 97%, i.e. the people who feel powerless, and incidently also agree with the 97% of scientists who believe that climate change is real, and caused by what we've done -- not done directly but accepted by us.  Extreme weather patterns; mass craziness (school shootings, e.g., by teenagers who can't get laid, ridiculous displays of wealth like the Kardashian wedding, the preoccupations with celebrities, the cupiidity of elected officials) -- all of this is so wrong. It's all fear. Fear rules, for those of us who have no backup.  Those who do have backup are wrong to think so -- they're exterminating themselves.

It's all there in "The O.D."  Read it, please,  The image of the bonsai tree at the end is perfect.
106556
Exactly half of this series of Cocaine Princess is describing what they're wearing and name dropping. This novel series could be cut in half if all that Coogie this, Louis Vuitton that and the hummer limousine this and the phantom that were eliminated. The chick inherited $50 billion and she generated $7.9 billion in revenue with all the business ventures and interest earned not to mention "the family business" (Costilla Cartel) money. That in conjunction with the fact that she was spending sporadically makes it evident that she's probably gonna spend a couple million on some custom diamond studded shoes and multi-million dollar homes and other luxuries and shopping sprees. If it weren't for the story line, which is great, and my interest in the suspense, I would have stopped reading after the first book. I wish I would have previewed the first one before I purchased it instead of going by others' ratings because, clearly, they don't know what a true novel is. As Alexus put it herself, this is an anti novel. There's quite a few typos in this anti novel and the ones before it. Most notably the page where "tick-or-treating" not tRick-or-treating" is mentioned in one paragraph and then again in the very next paragraph. The word "know" is spelled "no" quite a bit of times in this novel also. I'm getting frustrated with this series.
2318919
I didn't even spend this much on my wedding dress!  You should be ashamed of yourself!  We teach our children that money doesn't buy happiness, and that sharing is caring, etc etc and then ADULTS turn around and charge almost $1,000 for a Disney dress?  I could take my entire family to DISNEY WORLD for that price!!!!
4354114
Paris Hilton is famous for being wealthy.  Great.  When is she going to do something to deserve her fame?  Because this book is not it.
2872689
People tell me the photos I make look like they were done with a very expensive dslr camera!
4028870
Ms. Cohen's "billionaire" husband Mouli, turned out to be a total fraud, ripping off over $30M from various dupes, including Stacy's elderly father, who died penniless and heartbroken. Yet, all is not lost, Ms Cohen is now working in Beverly Hills as a WHORE! (arrested as such in 2013!) So, maybe you could "hire" her for some kosher tips and a little something extra, too!
2206912
It is all bout selling high end stuff. Not much useful here.
653291
Donald Trump, the Master of Celebrity Schmaltz, has been famously associated with the phrases I think big and I kick ass to win, and perhaps in emulation of Trumps BIG and ambitious perspective on things, the celebrity-savvy authors of this BIG overview of his business history and rise to power took BIG risks with this explosive saga.

Laid out like a brainy, sprawling tabloid, it nails the bombastic unreality of The Donalds (Horrifying) World. Its hot, its already won some literary awards, and it tramples with a sense of bemused irony across more of the big-ticket scandals of Trumps ongoing mess than any of the sycophantic odes to his genius published by groveling members of his tribe. Theres 800 pages of amazement here: a world class compendium answering, Who is he, and how did it happen?

In any normal election, this book would have been a game-changer that influenced the outcome.  But 2016 was a year in politics when freaks and loonies took over, and who better than media gurus and spinnmeisters Darwin Porter and Danforth Princeworld-class authorities on the rich and very famousto focus on The Donald as a naughty, perhaps crazed, celebrity?

Look to this book for the core of The Donald, and the fleurs du mal that blossomed, contrary to each of his pundits predictions, into a Presidential Administration.  FIVE STARS! Theres nothing else like it on the market. In terms of visibility and whatever allegiance this ode to power may garner, at home and abroad, theres room for growth Because THE DONALD and his only in America saga has only begun.
3060185
I read this book a year ago. It's a biography of the copper king William A. Clark, and her reclusive daughter Huguette Clark. She died at age 105, on the year 2011, leaving a $300 million estate, including mansions all over US, which had not been lived in for decades, because she chose to live in a simple hospital room in New York. Her Filipina nurse stood to inherit $30 million but Huguette's family--most of whom she had never met--contested the will. This nurse worked for Huguette for 20 years --12hrs/day, 7days a week. She didn't get the inheritance but she's now wealthy anyway because of the gifts she received over the years, e.g., 2 Manhattan apartments, luxury cars (Bentley, Lincoln), a Stradi violin, and 3 $5 million checks.

The book started in Butte, Montana, presenting WA Clark's rise to fortune in copper mining. His company also built railroad tracks going to Nevada (remember this was the late 1800s). A county in NV was actually named after him. The book then went to great lengths (boy, this book is looong) describing his opulent and wasteful lifestyle.

Next came Huguette's story, an introvert who had a fine eye for arts and everything beautiful. Among her collections were expensive dolls, violins, paintings, antique furniture, and did I mention mansions? She was a good painter too.

My take-away from this story? You can't bring anything with you when you pass away. Surround yourself with people and things that make you happy. But give away the excess to other people in need.
2901629
This is the funniest novel about expat life that I have ever read.  The Americans are crass and silly, always slipping over their tongues and generally offending everyone they come in contact with despite their mega super dollars and designer clothes.  Their foolish highjinks are unforgettable, especially that fiasco wedding banquet at the Negresco.  They all leftt a wake of property damage behind.  Ladyfingers shows that even  complete idiots can have a lot of money in America!
1300994
I would certainly consider myself an offbeat bride.  We are getting married on Halloween and using tattoo imagery for inspiration for everything from the invites to the cake.  I really enjoyed reading this book, it was well-written, witty and fun but just not very good advice for anyone who even has a decent wedding budget to spend.  It's overwhelming when you think about the amount of money that gets spent on one day and it did give me some perspective, but it almost tries to incite guilt in those that have the money and want to make it a classy day.  Ariel is someone who I would love to get to know, and I believe her wedding was perfect for her, but not everyone is going to have a big hippie love-fest in the woods and camp all night with their guests.  I'm a very untraditional girl but there are a few of the traditions of weddings that I do want...like an actual wedding dress and favors that aren't from the thrift store (see mugglies)  I'm ok with the fact that my parents want to give me a very special day, but it doesn't have to be "cookie cutter" or break the bank either.  This book is for someone with little to no money to spend on their wedding and a very good sense of humor.
4421333
Among the many excesses that New York City can claim is one of the most rediculous real estate systems in the world. The sub-title of this book says a lot, there is a passion in the real estate business in Manhattan. In a space of only a few square miles the rich (sometimes famous, sometimes not) have created a strange sub-culture that exists just like others around the city.

The difference here is that these people are the people you would expect to be secure in their lives, not filled with petty gossip and rivalries. But that's not the case. A good bit of the book is about the co-op board who has the right to accept or reject a new prospective purchaser. For instance no attractive divorced women need apply, the wives of the existing tennants don't want their husbands riding in the elevators with them. Likewise, no single men, we, after all, don't want gays in our building. I was surprised to read a lot of this. I would have thought that the civil rights legislation would have prevented such actions. But perhaps that was only to be applied in the South.

Very interesing side of the housing market.
182903
Wow, one would think being rich you wouldn't have any problems but not would they be wrong. I love how these two found each other and took risk to be together. It is too bad that it was such a risk and that there are people out there that think they are so much better then others. I love how love more then over comes this and life can be full of such beauty.
2483847
When I first started reading, I thought this book would be over my head, but after a few pages I was hooked on the fascinating lives of incredibly rich people weve heard about but never like this! The Day the Bubble Burst covers the history of the stock market from the middle 1800s to the mid -1900s.  But its not a boring history. It is about real people, rich and poor, in real situations who believed in the slogan Everyone deserves to be rich. Wall Street in New York became their god, the stock market their highway to a financial heaven. There are shocking revelations of complex manipulations, embezzlements, and ramifications that adversely affected almost the entire world when the market crashed.
The author is an omniscient storyteller that made me feel as if he knew each person. His extensive research is so smoothly weaved into the story that I felt as if he was actually in the secret business meetings with J.P. Morgan, Henry Ford, Jack Kennedy, J. Edgar Hoover and many others, in the homes of the rich and poor listening to their plans and dreams, in the streets during the celebrations when the market was up and the chaos when the market was down.
There is so much I want to say about this book, but I would spoil it for the reader. It is captivating, a definite 6!
2014187
This book tells how some people became millionaires.  It does not tell how to become a millionaire as one needs to have a good income to begin with. People who want to get rich quickly will be disappointed. From my experience, the statistics ring true.

I am a retired bank officer and financial analyst.  I worked in Los Angeles and found that many high earners such as physicians and actors tended to spend every nickle they had as quickly as they got it.  I received a loan application from a singer/actor who is long dead.  He wanted the bank to loan him $100,000 but he only had a net worth of $23,000 because he spent his millions and millions in earnings rapidly.  I declined the loan.

One of my customers was a "knighted" actress.  She couldn't balance her checkbook. She had someone manage her money and lived comfortably.

My husband and I are multi-millionaires. I had a good laugh as I viewed my coupon-clipping self in this book. My husband's car is a late model Pontiac because it is big and he is tall.  My husband and I have everything we want and we are setting aside money for the education of our grandchildren.  We are also gifting money to our children, periodically and in small doses, so that they learn to live within their means.

That's the lesson of this book. Live within your means and put some money aside for the long-haul. . .and yes, one has to have money left over after paying the bills so not everyone can become a millionaire.
2301269
Ahhhhh, to get flithy rich on the hopes and shattered dreams of the folks that forked over hard-earned money for this sloppy nonsense of a book. The real Secret in life is work hard, tell the truth, don't try to fool  people, and then....and only then..... May the Force be with you!!!!
4925184
Books about spoiled rich kids who end up broke and unable to cope in the real world as adults should have warning labels so I can avoid them. It's not only because I can't relate to them but also because I have not one iota of sympathy for adults who are can't function in the real world. I'm pretty sure the majority of the population have difficulty caring for a character who mishandles money and then fails to learn practical skills to work themselves out of a slump. Amanda Brown is one of these spoiled rich kids. Initially I thought she was a b*tchin' executive who knew what's what and why, only to have her crumble into a spendthrift baby. Argh. It's not that I dislike her because she was rich. I dislike her because when she loses her job and has to rethink her life, she doesn't. She cries and whines and wallows in self-pity. Oh no I can't pay for my thousand dollar a month penthouse. Uh? Move out. Oh no I have no money because I spent my paycheck already. Uh? Sell some stuff. Oh no I'm the only person who still has a job at my company but I get a lower salary. DON'T FRICKEN QUIT!

The amount of times I wanted to slap this woman upside the head was unbelievable. There is a reason I like strong female characters and it's because I want to admire them, I want to be them, I want their actions to motivate me into a better woman. Amanda Brown is everything I don't want. Her dynamic with George is born in a moment of complete mental instability - that's okay-ish - she wants his body so get it girl. She appears to fighting against him which should be a mark in her favor except it's because she is too proud to suck it up her decreased salary and help. Once she screws her PR consultant attempt, she tries to fix it by agreeing to a reality tv show. Yeah, any human worth their brain cells knows that reality tv shows are full of petty arguments, cameras in your face and usually not positive publicity. It didn't surprise me when the reality tv shebang blew up in her face. It wasn't a good idea to begin with. But oh, what really got my fires gunning for blood was the ending. When Amanda does the ONE SMART thing in the whole book, making me believe she might redeem herself, she reminds me why I hate spoiled rich kids.

*******Spoiler************

She agrees to marry George who, as a multi-millionaire, promise to look after her and fund her life.

*******Spoiler************

Forgive me if I wasn't leaping for joy at the fact that Amanda Brown had just found someone else to take the burden of her financial worries. Instead of say, finding a job, making her own money and still having a relationship with George. Bah! It's a shame I hated Amanda so much because the story was beautifully written I just didn't like the topic.