The Rooftop Party; Love Sold Separately; Dorothy Parker Drank Here; Farewell, Dorothy Parker; The Other Life; and more. Meister’s essays have appeared in publications such as the New York Times, Newsday, the Wall Street Journal blog, the Huffington Post, the Daily Beast, Long Island Woman, Writer’s Digest, and Publishers Weekly. Career highlights include appearing on NPR, being selected for the prestigious Indie Next List by the American Booksellers Association, having her work translated into foreign languages, and receiving a TV series option from HBO.
Meister lives in New York and publicly speaks about her books, fiction writing, and America’s most celebrated literary wit, Dorothy Parker.
She applied the Page 69 Test to her new novel, Divorce Towers, and reported the following:
Thank you for inviting me to put Divorce Towers to the Page 69 Test. I think it passes!Visit Ellen Meister's website.
Three of the novel’s central themes are captured on this page. It opens with my main character, Addison Torres, training for her new job as concierge at a luxury Beverly Hills condo nicknamed Divorce Towers. A male resident approaches to ask Addison and her boss, Frankie, to send a birthday gift to his eight-year-old daughter and put his name on the card. He has no idea what the child might like—only that he wants it to cost about $500. After Addison presses him with questions, they decide to send the child an expensive basket of goodies that will encourage her artistic abilities.Addison didn’t know how they would find art supplies for an eight-year-old that came anywhere close to $500, but with Frankie’s guidance she called a Beverly Hills toy store and asked them to put together a package and have it delivered that afternoon. Remembering the hours she’d spent at the kitchen table with a box of crayons and a coloring book, Addison imagined an eighteen-wheeler backing up to the little girl’s house to dump an Everest of Crayolas.Here, in addition to highlighting the entitlement of the wealthy residents Addison encounters throughout the book, the narrative depicts her as a fish-out-of-water, which is central to Addison’s story.
Addison’s matchmaking background is also central to her story. It’s what she did in New York before her life fell apart. Now she wants to use those skills to find an appropriate match for her dear Uncle Arnie, who’s pining for his wretched ex-wife. Addison’s determination to find a more suitable love match for her uncle is the narrative engine that drives the whole book. This plot point makes an appearance on the bottom of the page, when a woman approaches the concierge desk to ask for plastic surgeon recommendations.Addison didn’t think the lovely blond looked like she needed to have any work done, but kept that to herself. She did, however, want to stall her for a quick conversation to assess her suitableness for Arnie.I hope readers of this blog agree that this passes the test… and maybe even gets an A!
“Good luck with it,” Addison said. “I’m sure you’ll look spectacular for whatever event you’re getting ready for.”
“The only event I’m looking forward to is my divorce.”
“In that case,” Addison said, “I hope he eats his heart out.”
“Maybe if I show up with some stud on my arm,” the woman said with a bitter laugh.
“What kind of stud are you looking for?” Addison asked, hoping she wasn’t pushing it too far.
“Why? You know someone?”
The Page 69 Test: Dorothy Parker Drank Here.
The Page 69 Test: Love Sold Separately.
The Page 69 Test: Take My Husband.
--Marshal Zeringue
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