book review: little pink slips by sally koslow

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After devouring and enjoying The Late, Lamented Molly Marx, I was thrilled to learn Sally Koslow had written another book: Little Pink Slips.

Little Pink Slips is the story of Magnolia Gold, a North Dakotan turned New Yorker who now is editor-in-chief at Lady magazine. Magnolia is professionally successful and incredibly focused on her career. Cue intense workplace drama.

Although I really enjoyed the character of Magnolia, I did not enjoy anyone else in the book. (In Molly Marx, I loved everyone, even the obnoxious and selfish characters, because they had depth and believability). Magnolia could not catch a break in this book, and it wore me out. I confess, I am not a huge fan of workplace drama. (Seriously, even The Office depresses me: I dread the thought of life in an office environment surrounded by people you dislike.) I found myself rooting for her to find a way to walk right out of the pages and find new friends, a new job and new coworkers.

Perhaps my expectation were too high after Molly Marx, but I was underwhelmed with this book. I loved The Late, Lamented Molly Marx, and I liked some elements of this book, but it went on too long and involved too many people I didn't care about. I think Sally Koslow is a great writer, but Little Pink Slips lacked the combination of humor and insight that drew me into Molly Marx. I was disappointed, but Koslow has proven herself capable of writing a multitude of three-dimensional characters, and I'm still eagerly awaiting her next novel, With Friends Like These, due out in summer of 2010.

Rating: 2 stars (out of 5) - okay
Pages: 389
Publication: April 2, 2007
Source: my local public library

Comments

  1. Sally KoslowOctober 13, 2009 at 9:29 AM

    Thanks for reading my first book, Little Pink Slips. I couldn't agree more that with my second book, The Late, Lamented Molly Marx, I took a step forward with my writing...and I think that third book, With Friends like These, out next summer, will be going in the same forward direction. All best, Sallly Koslow

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