In spite of women's supposedly massive buying power and growing presence in Fortune 500 boardrooms, many women are still awfully old-fashioned when it comes to cash. Why do they show so little interest in managing investments? Or lie to their partners about what something costs? And what's behind that evil prescription known as "retail therapy"? Perle (When Work Doesn't Work Anymore
) investigates these questions and others in this remarkable sociological study-cum-memoir. She boldly exposes her own financial fears (the book opens as she's confronting a divorce and the reality that she and her four-year-old son will have to sleep on a friend's couch), admitting that, despite her years climbing the corporate ladder (in publishing, incidentally), "there's still that other part of me—the one that wants to reserve the option of depending on someone else." Perle also profiles dozens of everyday women, spotlighting the anxiety, embarrassment and guilt money causes them. Commentary from financial experts, sociologists and others helps demonstrate Perle's thesis: women cannot afford to be ambivalent about money and must learn to separate feelings from finance. Perle's book raises more questions than it answers, which is part of its allure—it'll surely have readers thinking twice before they log on to Bloomingdales.com after a bad day at work. Agent, Richard Pine. (Feb.)
