The New Small Talk: She Does It So Awfully Well

By Neal 

bridie-clark-outdoors.jpgAfter a detour co-authoring Gawker‘s unfortunate foray into the book world with a thousand other writers, Bridie Clark is back on familiar turf, having signed a contract for her second novel, I Think She’s Got it, with Weinstein Books, which snapped up film and TV rights along with the publication deal. The book is described as “a thoroughly modern retelling of Pygmalion,” about “a dashing but arrogant man-about-town who is convinced he can turn anyone—even the most awkward wallflower—into this year’s ‘it’ girl.” (Didn’t this really happen with a couple socialites and a publicist a few years back, or am I half-remembering a Lifetime TV movie?) Ah, the majesty and grandeur of the English language. It’s the greatest possession we have. Anyway, it’s refreshing to see somebody finally rewrite Pygmalion for adults, after all those teen movie versions like She’s All That and Jawbreaker.

(But seriously: For my money, the characters were the most delicious aspect of Because She Can, so it should be fun to see how Clark deals with them when she’s got a ready-made, solid plot architecture that, ideally, isn’t going to let a single antagonist overwhelm the rest of the story.)