BOOK GIVEAWAY: Kick off your Manolos, dig into recession lit with "Social Lives"

Last week, Ruth La Ferla's eloquent piece in the Style section of The New York Times forecast a new trend for women's fiction: "recession lit." "Once unabashedly focused on the perks of wealth and fame, this spate of new fiction is tackling the recession and its attendant woes," wrote La Ferla. In the story, she quoted this section from Social Lives, a novel coming next month by our client Wendy Walker.

“There was little equity in the house after the loan for the new wing they’d put on last year, and the severe drop in the housing market,” she frets. “Nothing remained in the checking account beyond what was needed to pay the bills.”

Can you relate, dear Reader?

GalleyCat interviewed Wendy last Friday about the new economic reality facing women's fiction. Specifically, they asked her about the experience of publishing exactly two novels that focus on women in wealthy communities: one pre-recession (Four Wives), and one mid-recession (Social Lives). From Financial Times onward, everyone in the publishing industry - as well as those who make the the publishing industry possible, readers - are keeping an eye out for writers and books that grapple with the tightened purses of our times. Call it the Age of Recess.

Because we here at P&P are taking the recession lit trend as seriously as anyone, we thought we'd offer something to our plucky readers who could use a little freebie. A moment of escapism while you ignore your 401K, browse online sales, and brew coffee at home! See how the once very, very privileged ladies of Wilshire are navigating the recession waters, in particular Jacqueline Halstead's husband, whose hedge fund husband is being investigated for fraud. (Read Wendy's blog post - and a very moving reader comment - about her character Jacqueline here).

We'll select two winners for this book giveaway. To enter, just leave a comment below, and don't forget to include your email address so we can notify you. Contest closes next Wednesday!

Have a seat, Kindle: Barnes & Noble nabs #1 Books spot on "Top Free Apps"

We were excited to see on GalleyCat today that Barnes & Noble has taken top honors in the "Top Free Apps" category under App Store's "Books" category, just a little over a week from the release of their new B&N Bookstore App. We were also pleased to see that in addition to searching event calendars for author readings, the new app allows users to watch video interviews with authors (speaking of....we might know somebody who does author interviews......!).

But truth be told, like GalleyCat, we were downright shaking with geeky glee when we learned about the snap-and-search feature. As B&N explains, users can simply snap a picture of a book, and in seconds, gain product reviews, editorial reviews, and customer ratings - even locate it at the nearest B&N, and reserve it for pick-up.

I know book lovers - I know! Finally, we are getting as techy as the music crowd! Before you know it, Pandora will have swept in to generate reading lists based on our favorite books and/or authors! Oh wait, someone already has.

R.I.P Gourmet Magazine?

One of our office favorites, Gourmet, may not last through the end of the year, according to Eater.com. Shockingly enough, it appears that the economy had something to do with it.

"Gourmet will probably not see the end of the year. Its parent company, Conde Nast, can no longer rely on the huge profits of the newspaper portion of the Newhouse family business...It owns Gourmet, Bon Appetite, and epicurious.com. Conde Nast simply owns too many titles in this category. From 2004 to 2008, Gourmet’s ad pages have dropped from 1,364 to 955, with a 24% drop last year. January’s ad pages were down another 32%."

Read more of the story here or here.

This makes me particularly sad for Ruth Reichl, former food critic for New York Times and grande dame of Gourmet. I read her book Garlic and Sapphires a little over a year ago, and couldn't stop jabbering about it to absolutely everyone around me. "Have you read Garlic and Sapphires? No? Why are we even still talking??"

But perhaps there's a silver lining. The lining that surrounds the interwebs, of course. So let's take a vote: Should Ruth Reichl start a food blog? (I say YES).

EDITOR'S NOTE: A reader brought it to our attention that this information does NOT come directly from Eater.com, but rather 247wallst.com, which Eater.com sourced. You can read the original piece by Douglas A. McIntyre here.

Thanks for keeping us accountable, Anonymous! Anonymous also let us know that this piece, titled "Twelve Major Media Brands Likely To Close In 2009," includes editorial mistakes...suggesting that the grim prediction for Gourmet may be questionable. (But - to give credit where credit is due, we should also mention that McIntyre is the former president of Financial World Magazine and also used to work for Time, Inc. - not just Joe Blow Blogger.) If there is evidence to the contrary about Gourmet, proving that the magazine has a big, vibrant future ahead of it, that would dreamy to us here at P&P....and I imagine to most in book publicity.