Thursday, July 23, 2009

The Penny Pinchers Club by Sarah Strohmeyer (2009)

My kickin' colleague Michele L. just finished reading Sarah Strolmeyer's latest novel The Penny Pinchers Club and discovered a Scranton reference. She also told me that Strohmeyer is a very popular author on the "chick lit" circuit, most notably for her bestselling Bubbles series and the novel The Cinderella Pact. Strolmeyer is also a native of Bethlehem, PA.

Released at the beginning of July 2009, The Penny Pinchers Club (which is a very timely novel, given the current economic crisis) is a story told from the point-of-view of happily married wife, mother, and compulsive shopper Kat, who lives in New Jersey. When she discovers her husband has been hiding a secret bank account from her, Kat's mind prepares for divorce as she takes drastic and over-the-top measures to cut her savings. She soon meets like-minded penny pinchers when she joins a group of like-minded women (and men) who call themselves The Penny Pinchers Club.

The Scranton reference appears on page 192, as Kat and her friend ( and fellow Penny Pincher Club member) are driving around Wall Street and discussing his former career as a broker and his friend Eric, a former broker originally from Scranton who committed suicide:

"Stabbing an accusing finger at the Drummond building, he said angrily, 'But these are the jerks who made it so the fat cats at our brokerage could keep their second homes and pay for their kids to go to private school, not giving a damn if a stupid palooka from Scranton like Eric could or couldn't pay his mortgage. And now these guys are gonna pay, too.'"

The Penny Pinchers Club is available to borrow from the Lackawanna County Library System; to place a hold, click here. The Large Print edition is also available by clicking here.

Thanks again to my undeniably awesome and groovy colleague Michele L. for this reference.

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