LONDON: Terrifying magazine editor Miranda Priestly returns to loom over former intern Andy Sachs, a decade later in Lauren Weisberger’s sequel to her best-selling debut novel, The Devil Wears Prada.
Weisberger, now married and a mother, brings us up to date with Andy, her former nemesis Emily at Runway magazine and the cynical Miranda in a new novel where most of the characters have evolved as adults, with the exception of Andy’s former boss.
The 36-year-old US author, whose 2003 novel was turned into a hit film starring Meryl Streep as the withering Miranda and Anne Hathaway as the naive Andy, told Reuters that 10 years gave her time to reinvent a back-story for characters inspired by her experiences as Vogue Editor Anna Wintour’s assistant.
“I was really curious to check back in to see what Andy and the crew were up to,” Weisberger said. In the 10 years since the first novel spent a year on the New York Times Bestseller List, Andy has become successful, married, a mother and is on top of the world as the editor of a bridal magazine that allows her to travel and write.
Enter the dragon Miranda, who returns to loom over Andy’s bright new life and threatens to make a mockery of all her efforts to escape the horrendous world of Runway magazine.
“She [Andy] is reunited with her old nemesis Emily, and Miranda comes back to haunt her,” Weisberger said.
The 2006 original, directed by David Frankel, was nominated for two Oscars and earned $326.5 million worldwide, according box office tracking site boxofficemojo.com.
Despite her own success and a newfound respect for the effort and sacrifices needed to gain the trappings of achievement, Weisberger has not seen fit to paint a softer more understanding picture of Miranda in her latest novel. “I would say that of all the characters, Miranda has evolved the least,” she said.
So has she any compassion for Miranda even now? “I can’t, because one of the things I believe in is that it’s possible to be successful and nice.”
Published in The Express Tribune, June 22nd, 2013.
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