Strategies To Keep Secret Through Sophie Kinsella’s Novel “Can You Keep A Secret”

  APPENDICES

Biography of Sophie Kinsella

  Madeleine Sophie Wickham (born Madeleine Sophie Townley;12 December 1969) her work under the pen name Sophie Kinsella. Madeleine Wickham was born in London. She did her schooling iand . Wickham worked as

  While working as a financial journalist, at the age of 24, she wrote her first novel. The Tennis Party was immediately hailed as a success by critics and the public alike and became a top ten bestseller. She went on to publish six more novels as Madeleine Wickham: A Desirable Residence, Swimming Pool Sunday,

  The Gatecrasher , The Wedding Girl, Cocktails for Three and Sleeping Arrangements .

  Her first novel under the pseudonym Sophie Kinsella (taken from her middle name and her mother's maiden name ) was submitted to her existing publishers anonymously and was enthusiastically received. She revealed her real identity for the first time when Can You Keep a Secret? was published in December 2005. Sophie Kinsella is best known for writing the and its resulting complications for her life. The first two Shopaholic books were adapted into aand released in February 2009, witas Luke Brandon. Twenties Girl, which was released in the UK in July 2009 was also published under the name Sophie Kinsella. The latest addition to the Shopaholic seriecame out in September 2010.

  Wickham lives iwith her husband, Henry Wickham (whom she met in Oxford), the headmaster of a boys' preparatory school. They have been married for 17 years and have four sons and a daughter, Freddy (b.1997), Hugo (b.1999), Oscar (b.2006), Rex William (b. April 15th, 2010) and Sybella (b.

  December 22, 2011). She is the sister of fellow writer, Gemma Townley.

  Sophie Kinsella raced into the UK bestseller lists in September 2000 with her first novel in the Shopaholic series - (also published as Confessions of a Shopaholic). The book’s heroine, Becky Bloomwood – a fun and feisty financial journalist who loves shopping but is hopeless with money – captured the hearts of readers worldwide and she has since featured in five further adventures i(also published as Shopaholic Takes Manhattan)Becky Bloomwood came to the big screen in 2009 with the hit Disney movie

  Sophie Kinsella is a pseudonym that Madeleine Wickham started using once she published Confessions of a Shopaholic. Although Wickham had previously published seven other books under her real name, her Kinsella books were much more popular, so she has stuck with the pseudonym. All of her books fall into the genre "chick lit" -- light, humorous books about modern women and their misadventures in life and love.

  Kinsella made several trips to Manhattan to research her second and third Shopaholic books. Before writing Shopaholic Ties the Knot she actually took off her wedding ring and pretended she was planning her wedding so she could try on Vera Wang wedding dresses. Kinsella loves Cadbury's Giant Chocolate Buttons.

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SUMMARY

  A young woman, named Emma Corrigan, who lived in London, and was struggling for her career at the moment. She was trying hard to get a promotion and was actually desperate to get one. But that’s not the only problem. She was involved in a perfect relationship with a guy named Connor. Like that’s not enough, she also detest her family–Kerry, her cousin, to be precise. Not that she hated them, really, but apparently, she didn’t feel very much appreciated by any of her family member.

  Her situation worsened as she blabbed all her secrets to a stranger sitting next to her on a plane since she thought she was about to die when the plane entered some turbulence. It turned out her relationship with her boyfriend was not as perfect as everyone thought it was. Connor never really understood her, and that she was never herself when she was with Connor. In fact, Connor actually bores her.

  Emma is sitting on a turbulent plane. She's always beennervous flyer. She really thinks that this could be her last moment. So, naturally enough, she starts telling the man sitting next to her - quite a dishy American, but she's too frightened to notice -all her innermost secrets. How she scans the backs of intellectual books and pretends she's read them. How she does her hair up like Princess Leia in her bedroom. How she's not sure if she has a G-spot, and whether her boyfriend could find it anyway. How she feels like a fraud at work - everyone uses the word 'operational' all the time but she hasn't a clue what it means. How the coffee at work is horrible. How she once threw a troublesome client file in the bin. If ever there was a bare soul, it's hers.

  She survives the flight, of course, and the next morning the famous founding boss of the whole mega corporation she works for is coming for a look at the UK branch. As he walks around, Emma looks up and realises.

  She told this stranger that she had this secret code that she always use to get out of the office and get a coffee break at Starbucks with her co-worker, Katie.

  All of this was because she thought the coffee in the office tasted like poison. And that she sometimes gave orange juice to a plant belong to her co-worker, Artemis, whenever she irked her.

  And all other embarrassing stuffs about her. All her deepest secrets. Just because a little turbulence on the plane and she thought she’d die soon.

  She regretted it soon–very soon, actually–once she found out that this stranger is a genius and creative Jack Harper, who also happened to be the co- founder of the company she was currently working at. Put it in a different way, the stranger was her boss. Or her boss’ boss. And just when she thought she could make up for the flaws she had shown to her boss, even before she knew him, all the embarrasing stuffs didn’t seem to go away. Right in front of Jack Harper’s nose, her co-worker Katie used their secret code to get away from the office and get a coffee at Starbucks. Then her boyfriend appeared to be a huge fan of this Jack Harper, and then confronted him in order to impressed him. Right in front of Emma, who just spilled the secret that she thought her boy friend looked like Barbie’s Ken. And that she was never herself when she was with her boyfriend. Humiliated, embarrased, ashamed, put them into one.

  There are some hilarious moments, especially when Emma realizes that the guy she told all her secrets too is actually the CEO of the company she works for. And he's so funny about it! Jack doesn't say straight out that he knows Emma, but he remembers everything she said on the plane and makes a point to subtly let her know that he remembers. I felt both embarrassed for Emma and was laughing so hard from the situation that I got crazy looks from people around me.

  (Whatever, it was great!) She doesn't know a lot about the business she works in, tries too hard, and has quite a few anxiety issues. But she's fun, loving, and puts all her effort and heart into the things she undertakes, which makes her completely loveable. The same holds true for all her characters -- they have their flaws, and they have their good points. Sometimes it evens out, sometimes it doesn't. I felt like I was reading about real people, which was nice. There were a few times where I had some "yeah, right, like that would happen" moments, but nothing big enough to really detract from my enjoyment. Besides, I took this book as something fun and not too serious, and really loved approaching it that way.

  The main character, Emma Corrigan, is your normal 25-years old and somewhat-insecure woman. She is trying to get a promotion at work, has a fantastic boyfriend, and is very happy with life, or so she thinks. On an extremely turbulent flight back from a business trip from Glasgow, Emma's secrets unwillingly spill out to a total stranger next to her. She ends up telling this handsome American stranger nearly every secret she has, and then some. When the plane lands, she is embarrassed but figures she'll never see him again.

  When this American stranger ends up being the owner at her job, Emma is mortified and determined to act like nothing happened. But Jack, the American stranger, has other ideas. Emma seems to have touched him in some way. And Emma, who thought she was totally happy with her perfect boyfriend, starts to wonder.