The Wonder Spot

Melissa Bank's runaway best seller, The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing, charmed readers and critics alike with its wickedly insightful, tender look at a young woman's forays into love, work, and friendship. Now, with The Wonder Spot, Bank is back with her signature combination of devilishly self-deprecating humor, seriousness, and wisdom. Nothing comes easily to Sophie Applebaum, the black sheep of her family trying to blend in with the herd. Uneasily situated between two brothers, Sophie first appears as the fulcrum and observer of her clan in "Boss of the World". Then, at college, in "The Toy Bar", she faces a gauntlet of challenges as Best Friend to the dramatic and beautiful Venice Lambourne, curator of "perfect things". In her early 20s, Sophie is dazzled by the possibilities of New York City during the Selectric typewriter era, only to land solidly back in Surrey, PA, after her father's death.