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khornstein1's review
3.0
I give this book three stars because I really liked the original Preppy Handbook and I think Lisa Birnbach can be funny at times. I am afraid, preppies, that your days (of visibility at least) are numbered. There's plenty of money around, a lot of it new, but that's not what you're about.
In 1980, at the dawn of the Reagan era, preppies kind of came out of the closet. Before then, they did their thing, quietly, wherever they happened to be--at their summer place, in their blueblood workplace, in their clubs. After 1980 and the publication of the original Preppy Handbook, everyone started making reference to preppy clothes, places, colleges, etc. People became more class conscious. But I digress...
In the past 30 years, a whole new upper class has emerged that doesn't have anything to do with preppiness. At the same time, the 1% started to be all lumped together--and not in a good way. Read last week's NYTimes article on men's business attire, for example, to see that the 1% is toning it down...which is kind of what this book is about--kind of a watered-down preppiness which is maybe closer to the original idea of prep, which is understated, so it's kind of boring. On the other hand, I'm kind of grateful that it's no longer such an aspiration for people, since you can't really aspire to be born into something you're not...
Funny bits about dogs and cellphones. Worth a read if you read the original. Or if you're the real thing.
In 1980, at the dawn of the Reagan era, preppies kind of came out of the closet. Before then, they did their thing, quietly, wherever they happened to be--at their summer place, in their blueblood workplace, in their clubs. After 1980 and the publication of the original Preppy Handbook, everyone started making reference to preppy clothes, places, colleges, etc. People became more class conscious. But I digress...
In the past 30 years, a whole new upper class has emerged that doesn't have anything to do with preppiness. At the same time, the 1% started to be all lumped together--and not in a good way. Read last week's NYTimes article on men's business attire, for example, to see that the 1% is toning it down...which is kind of what this book is about--kind of a watered-down preppiness which is maybe closer to the original idea of prep, which is understated, so it's kind of boring. On the other hand, I'm kind of grateful that it's no longer such an aspiration for people, since you can't really aspire to be born into something you're not...
Funny bits about dogs and cellphones. Worth a read if you read the original. Or if you're the real thing.
lisawhelpley's review
4.0
Enjoyable book, as enjoyable as the first one so many years ago. Worth buying? Nah, use the library.
jeslyncat's review
5.0
A great update for preppies everywhere, Brinbach has authored another wonderful read. A modern primer for anyone who has ever worn Izod or monogram, "True Prep" is an instant classic, exactly like "The Preppy Handbook" was a decade ago. The updates and new references are hilarious coupled with classic style and grace.
nlwisz's review
4.0
You should read this book if you like: Collegiate style, being rich, wishing you were rich, drinking, putting on airs, cultivating an aura of prestige, Ralph Lauren, old leather furniture, pearls, trust funds
* * *
True Prep is not so much an updated version of The Official Preppy Handbook as it is an addendum to it. It addresses lifestyle innovations that weren't really around when the original was published in 1980—namely, cell phones and the internet/social media.
While True Prep offers the same wit and sardonic sense of humor as the first book, the original is—like many things in life—better. Still, give this a read if you had any interest in the first one.
* * *
True Prep is not so much an updated version of The Official Preppy Handbook as it is an addendum to it. It addresses lifestyle innovations that weren't really around when the original was published in 1980—namely, cell phones and the internet/social media.
While True Prep offers the same wit and sardonic sense of humor as the first book, the original is—like many things in life—better. Still, give this a read if you had any interest in the first one.
themadmadmadeline's review
1.0
The original Official Preppy Handbook puts this one to shame.
Not funny, not catchy, takes itself too seriously and actually isn't a representation of "preps" at all.
Luckily my sister and I each have our own copy of the Official (before it was worth a fortune on Amazon). Thank God, and thank you mummy for being truly preppy before it was cool.
Sorry guys, Obama is not the new prep...
Not funny, not catchy, takes itself too seriously and actually isn't a representation of "preps" at all.
Luckily my sister and I each have our own copy of the Official (before it was worth a fortune on Amazon). Thank God, and thank you mummy for being truly preppy before it was cool.
Sorry guys, Obama is not the new prep...
ann17young's review
3.0
A fun satirical read about the origins of what we consider “prep” fashion. The book is fully aware of what it is an leans into to it.
lazygal's review
2.0
This wasn't a Must Read book, except that when your life seems to be a blend between the Preppy Handbook and the JAP Handbook, well, this really was a Must Read.
The version I read was an ARC, and I really hope that the layout was not final because each page was crowded with text and photos, while the first Handbook had more white space. There were some typos (it's just Emma Willard School, no "the") and omissions (Vera Wang attended Professional Children's School, as did Yo-Yo Ma. George Hamilton was at Hackley School. Trust me on this.) Worse was the tone. It was too, well, serious. Every prep I know has a sense of humor about their preppiness, and the first book conveyed that. This book? Not so much.
As in most things prep, original and oldest is best.
ARC provided by publisher.
The version I read was an ARC, and I really hope that the layout was not final because each page was crowded with text and photos, while the first Handbook had more white space. There were some typos (it's just Emma Willard School, no "the") and omissions (Vera Wang attended Professional Children's School, as did Yo-Yo Ma. George Hamilton was at Hackley School. Trust me on this.) Worse was the tone. It was too, well, serious. Every prep I know has a sense of humor about their preppiness, and the first book conveyed that. This book? Not so much.
As in most things prep, original and oldest is best.
ARC provided by publisher.