Fifth Avenue Glamour Girl

Starred review from March 1, 2023

Veteran historical-fiction novelist Rosen (Park Avenue Summer; The Social Graces) gives readers a fascinating peek at Est�e Lauder's real-life start in the beauty industry while also spinning a compelling story of a close but tumultuous female friendship. Humiliated and left near penniless in 1938 New York after a family scandal, former rich girl Gloria is initially offended when an extremely blunt stranger at the salon critiques her fashion choices as well as her lackluster performance as shampoo girl. That pushy stranger, an ambitious entrepreneur named Est�e Lauder, will soon be one of Gloria's closest friends. Est�e is determined to get her homemade beauty products into the city's biggest department stores, and Gloria seems to be in a good position to help when she lands a glamorous job as a shop girl at Saks Fifth Avenue. Despite constant clashes due to their very different personalities and approaches, Gloria and Est�e's friendship endures over the years until long-kept secrets finally threaten to end it forever. VERDICT Gloria is a likable protagonist who makes bad decisions due to her unresolved guilt over her family's past. Readers will enjoy rooting for her to find her happy ending in this highly recommended read.--Mara Bandy Fass

Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2023
Even titans of industry need a shoulder to cry on. The story of how Est�e Lauder and Gloria Downing, nee Dowaziac, became lifelong friends and sometime enemies unfolds over decades, from a chance meeting in a rundown Depression-era beauty parlor to Lauder's rise as a defining brand in American cosmetics. Gloria is reeling from the very public shaming of her father, who is imprisoned for a Bernie Madoffesque Ponzi scheme that pierced their rarefied social circle. Est�e alludes to her own aristocratic heritage, though she's just as financially compromised as Gloria. She is, however, armed with unflagging ambition to make it in the beauty business, while Gloria can only see her future through the cracked lens of her father's past. How Est�e realizes her dream and Gloria overcomes her self-doubt is the surefire stuff of buddy fiction, but through deft characterization, lively pacing, and insider glimpses of the retail industry, Rosen elevates this "two gals against the world" trope in a reassuring and stylish tale about the power of true friendship.

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