Brooke's Pick: Shopgirls by Jessica Anya Blau

A novel of found family, growing up, and the best and worst of the 1980s, revolving around San Francisco’s most exclusive department store, I. Magnin.

Pull out your power dresses, ladies ... Jessica Anya Blau is taking us back to the 80s! The 1970's-centric Mary Jane author returns with another nostalgic story, this time revolving around the 1985 San Francisco shopping scene. Anyone dreaming of the mall's heyday and simpler times needs to pick up Shopgirls!

Shopgirls follows narrator Zippy - yes, that's her real name - as she suffers from imposter syndrome on the set of her job as a Petite Dresses salesgirl at the high-end San Francisco department store, I. Magnin. Zippy loves her job and has a knack for finding the right dress for every woman, but she can't help but compare herself to the other salesgirls, and even the affluent ladies who shop I. Magnin's racks. Zippy was the product of a one-night-stand, and grew up with a single mother who could only ever dream of donning one of the dresses that I. Magnin carries, and now here Zippy is selling them to fashionable ladies nothing like herself.

Rotating the same three outfits and trying not to step on any toes, all while not showing too much of her humble roots, Zippy still somehow manages to outsell all of the other girls at I. Magnin. Does Zippy dare to fancifully dream of a more comfortable and elegant life than the one she has always known? Equipped with the knowledge and advice of her worldly coworkers and her fun and fashionable roommate Raquel, Zippy feels like she's finally getting a grip on her life. That is, until she is delivered two blows that will either make or break her. Just how she handles these surprises may just set the course of her life, in one way or another ...

Jessica Anya Blau writes with heart, creating endearing narrators that you can't forget! Her stories are fairly simple without overcomplicated plots, and feature a colorful cast of characters that make her period pieces vibrant and nostalgic. Shopgirls is no exception. Having grown-up in shopping malls and department stores before everyone transitioned over to online shopping, I was so excited to read a career-focused novel about a young woman making a living by way of 1980's consumerism. I didn't know before heading into this book that I. Magnin was an actual luxury department store, and discovering that this novel was rooted in reality made it all the more enthralling.

I fell in love with main character Zippy right away, and wanted to see her prevail through all of the trials and tribulations. I found her work as a salesgirl fascinating, and was impressed time and time again by her ability to not only make herself of service to the elegant I. Magnin shoppers, but to do it with poise, grace, and efficiency. The parts of this story set at I. Magnin are where this novel shines, and I just loved enveloping myself in the luxe vibes this book gives off.

Some parts of Zippy's life outside of I. Magnin, were unfortunately not as enthralling, despite being a necessary and important part of the book. Primarily Zippy's relationship with her roommate Raquel, who I found to be written as quite immature and flighty for a professional woman in her late 20s. She felt more like a caricature than a real person, and I just couldn't get behind her and her offbeat personality. It was difficult to imagine Raquel and Zippy living together, much less being friends, which took away from the authenticity of this book.

However, I quite enjoyed Zippy's coworkers, and loved the ardor and atmosphere that they added to the I. Magnin scene. This is most certainly a book of found family, as much as it is about a young woman finding her way (and people) amidst a rapidly changing world. Recommended to readers who love a book with a plucky narrator and nostalgic vibes! - Brooke, Public Relations Librarian