Confessions of a Shopaholic - A Review

A week ago, my friend Mitz e-mailed me a series of e-books by Sophie Kinsella with a note that the novel was so hilarious she had "to go out of the room to keep myself from loughing out loud". Well Mitz, I got to read the very first of them, "Confessions of A Shopaholic" and what can I say?? Really, Becky Bloomwood , (the series' central character), "how hilariously imaginative can you get, in personifying the shopping habit gone bad. Terribly bad.”

Indeed, how do you really solve a problem like Becky Bloomwood? Fresh from college, 25-year old Becky just landed a job as a financial journalist for Successful Savings. In this job, she regularly sits down on press conferences where she doodles on her notebook rather than pay attention or ask questions.  She’s every inch what a shallow worker is, cares more for how she looks, what brand of clothing she wears than what quality of work she turns up. Irresponsible? Bordering to, but as she still shows up with her articles, no matter how unthought of they are, she hardly is, yet.

Anyway, as I said, Becky has this dangerous fixation for anything fashionable, expensive and branded that drawing her credit card from her bag can be likened to a disease (like kleptomania), haha. No wonder, she has to conjure up all the lamest excuses she could think of, when her credit card company would invite her for an explanation. From a broken leg, to a dying dog, trust Becky to come up with an alibi not to show up.

Reading the book, it's easy to berate Becky's character as reckless, immature, shallow and devoid of any self-regulation and security. But I surprised myself when I found myself loving her. Because right through her imperfection, I could somehow identify myself in my little idiosyncrasies (well I am not yet that full-blown rash, just a shadow of her). I so loved her sweet redemption towards the end when in a mire of utter humiliation, she learned the bitter lesson.  That opening your credit card bill envelope, and facing it up isn't as scary as dismissing it or throwing it in bin. And that one is defined not by the brand of his clothings, but by one's resolve to stand up for what is right, no matter what the outcome would be.

Other Sophie Kinsella that are on my lineup are: