Christmas At Tiffany's

Christmas At Tiffany's by Karen Swan ( Interesting Event )

The basic story is pretty run of the mill. Cassie’s marriage ended on her 10th anniversary when she finds out that her husband has a child with her best friend. But what happens from then on is a tale of three cities that is wonderfully woven and compiled. Cassie’s high profile friends decide that for her to find a new life for herself, Cassie should visit each of them in New York, Paris and London. Just thinking about the places that the writer went to pen this book, baffles me and makes me extremely jealous. The detail with which every city is describes made me feel like I was the one traveling through the fashion privy fast life in New York, the elegance of Paris and the hidden adventures of London. But what made the story really tick for me was ‘Henry’. Yes, I admit, its always about the ‘guy’. Henry is the explorer who really helps Cassie find herself and he does that ever so discreetly, giving her ‘lists’ of places to visit and things to do while in each city. His feelings about Cassie are about as subtle as Darcy’s in Pride and Prejudice, but personally I think Henry trumps Darcy. Don’t sue me for playing down one of the most gentleman-like, discreet, caring characters in literary history, read the book and find out for yourselves. Henry made me swoon from his first appearance in the book, and his lists made me want to be Cassie, having the adventures of a lifetime. I’m from the school of thought that says lying is a grave sin but any man who lies to a woman for her benefit and keeps his true feelings a secret instead of acting on his predator male instincts, is a keeper.

NEWYORK

Though I’m not too much for the fast new York life, what with the crampy apartments and the always running about, it’s no wonder all that has made New York into one of the most ‘filmed in’ cities in the world. With Cassie getting a personality transformation and a job in the tabooed fashion industry, I felt like I was watching Devil Wears Prada. Fashion is not for the faint hearted, but somehow Cassie made it to work. Befriending a gay stylist and sleeping with a handsome photographer with a bad reputation, Cassie made the most out of New York. But the highlight of the whole book for me was, as per the title of the book, the surprise on Christmas at Tiffany’s. Combine that with getting a tour of the Central Library with actually getting to see Charles Dickens’ hand held ‘A Christmas Carol’ and I was in love with Henry right then.

PARIS

In Paris, Cassie finds her passion, again thanks to Henry and his elusive contacts. The Parisian lifestyle though not as fast as New York, was a bit too high maintenance for my taste. Cassie settled in there as well. Though I could not fathom why Henry did not jump in to the picture in Paris soon enough, the events that followed, especially concerning Cassie’s mentor, the great Michelin star chef Claude, made sense in the end.

Henry did come though, and what did he do? He took Cassie on an impromptu trip to, wait for it, VENICE. Yup, this book’s the best travel guide I ever saw.

LONDON

In London, Henry’s city, Cassie experienced some of the most beautiful experiences in the whole book. I was expecting a ride on river Thames, or a ride on the London Eye, or on a personal note, a visit to Lords’ Cricket stadium. But Ms. Swan outdid herself with the early morning visit to St. James Cathedral and the swim in one of the lakes off River Thames.

But the most breathtaking of all was Henry’s expression of his feelings. It was nothing short of a mind numbing treasure hunt for Cassie, but that’s what made it all the more special. And again I would like to say that any man who converses in the Victorian Language of Flowers is, wait for it, a DEFINITE KEEPER!!

By :  Ong Yi Teng (4 Cergas)