Self care: a novel

Book Cover
Average Rating
Publisher
Varies, see individual formats and editions
Publication Date
Varies, see individual formats and editions
Language
English

Description

"Highbrow, brilliant." --The Approval Matrix, New York magazineOne of Cosmopolitan's 12 Books You'll Be Dying to Read This SummerA Publishers Weekly Best Book of Summer 2020A Vulture Best Book of Summer 2020One of Refinery29's 25 Books You'll Want to Read This SummerAn Esquire Must-Read Book of Summer 2020A Book Riot Best Book of 2020 *so farThe female cofounders of a wellness start-up struggle to find balance between being good people and doing good business, while trying to stay BFFs.Maren Gelb is on a company-imposed digital detox. She tweeted something terrible about the President's daughter, and as the COO of Richual, “the most inclusive online community platform for women to cultivate the practice of self-care and change the world by changing ourselves,” it's a PR nightmare. Not only is CEO Devin Avery counting on Maren to be fully present for their next round of funding, but indispensable employee Khadijah Walker has been keeping a secret that will reveal just how feminist Richual’s values actually are, and former Bachelorette contestant and Richual board member Evan Wiley is about to be embroiled in a sexual misconduct scandal that could destroy the company forever. Have you ever scrolled through Instagram and seen countless influencers who seem like experts at caring for themselves—from their yoga crop tops to their well-lit clean meals to their serumed skin and erudite-but-color-coded reading stack? Self Care delves into the lives and psyches of people working in the wellness industry and exposes the world behind the filter.

More Details

Contributors
Stein, Leigh Author
ISBN
9780143135197
9780525506867

Discover More

Excerpt

Loading Excerpt...

Author Notes

Loading Author Notes...

Similar Titles From NoveList

NoveList provides detailed suggestions for titles you might like if you enjoyed this book. Suggestions are based on recommendations from librarians and other contributors.
These books have the appeal factors darkly humorous and incisive, and they have characters that are "unlikeable characters."
These books have the appeal factors gossipy and incisive, and they have the subjects "social media," "scandals," and "influencers."
These books have the appeal factors incisive, and they have the subjects "social media" and "scandals."
These books have the appeal factors incisive and thought-provoking, and they have the subjects "social media," "feminism," and "blogs."
Fans of incisive novels that explore feminism will appreciate these satirical send-ups of wellness culture (Self Care) and reality television (The One) that feature women in the spotlight. -- Laura Szaro Kopinski
These occasionally sardonic novels offer sharp commentary on the sometimes vicious girl vs. girl conflict in self-described feminist or female-focused worlds --women's bodybuilding in Bodies, lifestyle and wellness in Self Care. -- Hannah Gomez
These books have the appeal factors darkly humorous, sardonic, and incisive, and they have the genre "satire and parodies"; the subjects "social media" and "internet"; and characters that are "unlikeable characters."
These books have the appeal factors incisive, and they have the subjects "wellness lifestyle," "social media," and "scandals."
These books have the appeal factors incisive and intricately plotted, and they have the subjects "social media" and "secrets."
These novels will interest literary fiction readers who appreciate incisive takedowns of lofty standards for women (Rouge) and the wellness industries that help perpetuate them (Self Care). -- Basia Wilson
Both darkly humorous novels are razor-sharp in dissecting power and privilege in academia (literary fiction Vladimir) or at a social media company (satirical fiction Self Care) after a fallout from a sexual misconduct scandal. -- Andrienne Cruz
Young women descend into the deceptive, social media obsessed trenches of the wellness industry while launching a publicity campaign to rescue floundering self-care companies in these satirical novels. -- Basia Wilson

Similar Authors From NoveList

NoveList provides detailed suggestions for other authors you might want to read if you enjoyed this book. Suggestions are based on recommendations from librarians and other contributors.
These authors' works have the appeal factors darkly humorous, and they have the genre "satire and parodies"; and the subjects "social media," "best friends," and "young women."
These authors' works have the appeal factors darkly humorous, reflective, and incisive, and they have the genre "satire and parodies"; and the subjects "college graduates," "young women," and "men-women relations."
These authors' works have the appeal factors incisive, and they have the subjects "scandals," "college graduates," and "covid-19 pandemic, 2020-2023."
These authors' works have the appeal factors reflective and incisive, and they have the subjects "grief," "social media," and "loss."
These authors' works have the appeal factors darkly humorous, sardonic, and incisive, and they have the subjects "women" and "men-women relations."
These authors' works have the appeal factors reflective and thoughtful, and they have the subjects "social media," "scandals," and "young women."
These authors' works have the genre "poetry"; and the subjects "social media," "secrets," and "loss."
These authors' works have the appeal factors incisive, and they have the subjects "new businesses," "grief," and "best friends."
These authors' works have the appeal factors darkly humorous, reflective, and incisive, and they have the subjects "grief," "social media," and "secrets."
These authors' works have the appeal factors darkly humorous, reflective, and incisive, and they have the genre "satire and parodies"; and the subjects "wellness lifestyle," "best friends," and "loss."
These authors' works have the appeal factors darkly humorous, reflective, and incisive, and they have the genres "satire and parodies" and "autobiographies and memoirs"; and the subjects "college graduates" and "young women."
These authors' works have the appeal factors incisive, thoughtful, and thought-provoking, and they have the subjects "grief," "feminism," and "loss."

Published Reviews

Booklist Review

Richual is more than an app and social-media platform; it's a place for women and nonbinary folk to digitally gather and share stories of trauma (particularly of the Trump-era variety), as well as swap luxurious but realistic tips for self-care. Or at least that's what cofounders Maren and Devin originally intended. The site has recently become little more than a constant flex of white privilege and cultural appropriation. Maren and Devin are facing serious backlash, especially after Maren tweets something nasty about the president's daughter, and after Evan Wiley, former Bachelor contestant and major Richual financial backer, is accused of serious sexual misconduct. Maren and Devin must separate these fatal public stains from the brand or risk losing their hard-earned fortunes. The book is timely and playful, offering a juicy glimpse into the pathos and ethos of the wellness industry and the influencers who make it all appear so shiny and bright. Perfect for fans of Such a Fun Age (2020) by Kiley Reid and The Assistants (2016) by Camille Perri.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Powered by Syndetics

Publisher's Weekly Review

In this sharp satire, Stein (The Fallback Plan) revels in wellness culture gone toxic. Devin Avery and Maren Gelb are cofounders of Richual, a Goop-like lifestyle company seeking to "catalyze women to be global changemakers through the simple act of self-care." (That the company doesn't have a maternity leave policy is a particularly juicy irony.) Richual uses sponsored content, paid influencers, confessional blog postings, and merchandise like "Believe Victims" beach towels to attract and monetize its user base. Devin, rich and devoted to a strenuous dietary and beauty regimen, is the face of the company, while Maren, who got her start working for a nonprofit feminist organization and has a mountain of student loan debt, ensures Richual runs "like a well-moisturized machine." That machine hits a rough patch after a woman publishes an essay about the problematic sexual predilections of Evan, a former Bachelorette contestant and prominent male investor in Richual, threatening the company's feminist bona fides and driving a wedge between its cofounders. The plot flies by, but the real appeal lies in Stein's merciless skewering of startup culture, bloviating entrepreneurs, fatuous trends, and woker-than-thou internet denizens, a vanity fair of 20-somethings who are at once conspicuously privileged yet vulnerable, earnest yet hypocritical, navel-gazing yet engaged, independent-minded yet tribal. Stein's sharp writing separates her from the pack in this exquisite, Machiavellian morality tale about the ethics of looking out for oneself. Agent: Erin Hosier, Dunow, Carlson & Lerner. (July)

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Powered by Syndetics

Kirkus Book Review

Tensions grow between the co-founders of a hot, womencentric startup in this hyper-timely--and unexpectedly heartfelt--satire of #girlboss culture and the wellness industrial complex. Maren and Devin are the co-founders of Richual, a social network for women. In addition to tracking your self-care habits--minutes meditated, REM sleep slept, water consumed--it was, Maren explains, the "digital sanctuary where you went to unload your pain," mostly in the form of yoga selfies. In the unofficial org chart of Richual, it is Maren's job to be competent and Devin's job to be rich, charismatic, and thin. "More than work wives," Maren muses, "Devin and I were sisters." And the company is a perfect mashup of their comparative ideologies, Maren's commitment to global social justice paired with Devin's passion for self-care. But as the company comes under a series of extremely 2020 stresses--the novel opens with a PR disaster brought on by one of Maren's ill-conceived tweets and culminates in a distinctly #MeToo--era crisis--their visions of what a feminist company can and should be become increasingly incompatible. Richual is a stand-in for any number of real women-led companies that sell female empowerment as an affordable luxury, and Stein sets up both the dream and the failings of this breed of corporate feminism with admirable nuance. But the book is smarter than its characters, who are exactly who you expect them to be, right down to the details meant to complicate them. This hardly takes away from the fun of the novel, which is compulsively readable, occasionally brilliant (a Vogue slideshow about their office is titled "Workplace as Vulva--And Why Not?"), and studded with genuine insight into the relationship between modern wellness and dormant rage. But the book--which leans heavily on references in lieu of precise observations--is ultimately too broad to have much bite. It's rich territory, if not entirely mined. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Powered by Syndetics

Booklist Reviews

Richual is more than an app and social-media platform; it's a place for women and nonbinary folk to digitally gather and share stories of trauma (particularly of the Trump-era variety), as well as swap luxurious but realistic tips for self-care. Or at least that's what cofounders Maren and Devin originally intended. The site has recently become little more than a constant flex of white privilege and cultural appropriation. Maren and Devin are facing serious backlash, especially after Maren tweets something nasty about the president's daughter, and after Evan Wiley, former Bachelor contestant and major Richual financial backer, is accused of serious sexual misconduct. Maren and Devin must separate these fatal public stains from the brand or risk losing their hard-earned fortunes. The book is timely and playful, offering a juicy glimpse into the pathos and ethos of the wellness industry and the influencers who make it all appear so shiny and bright. Perfect for fans of Such a Fun Age (2020) by Kiley Reid and The Assistants (2016) by Camille Perri. Copyright 2020 Booklist Reviews.

Copyright 2020 Booklist Reviews.
Powered by Content Cafe

PW Annex Reviews

In this sharp satire, Stein (The Fallback Plan) revels in wellness culture gone toxic. Devin Avery and Maren Gelb are cofounders of Richual, a Goop-like lifestyle company seeking to "catalyze women to be global changemakers through the simple act of self-care." (That the company doesn't have a maternity leave policy is a particularly juicy irony.) Richual uses sponsored content, paid influencers, confessional blog postings, and merchandise like "Believe Victims" beach towels to attract and monetize its user base. Devin, rich and devoted to a strenuous dietary and beauty regimen, is the face of the company, while Maren, who got her start working for a nonprofit feminist organization and has a mountain of student loan debt, ensures Richual runs "like a well-moisturized machine." That machine hits a rough patch after a woman publishes an essay about the problematic sexual predilections of Evan, a former Bachelorette contestant and prominent male investor in Richual, threatening the company's feminist bona fides and driving a wedge between its cofounders. The plot flies by, but the real appeal lies in Stein's merciless skewering of startup culture, bloviating entrepreneurs, fatuous trends, and woker-than-thou internet denizens, a vanity fair of 20-somethings who are at once conspicuously privileged yet vulnerable, earnest yet hypocritical, navel-gazing yet engaged, independent-minded yet tribal. Stein's sharp writing separates her from the pack in this exquisite, Machiavellian morality tale about the ethics of looking out for oneself. Agent: Erin Hosier, Dunow, Carlson & Lerner. (July)

Copyright 2020 Publishers Weekly Annex.

Copyright 2020 Publishers Weekly Annex.
Powered by Content Cafe

Reviews from GoodReads

Loading GoodReads Reviews.

Staff View

Loading Staff View.