Pace, Alison

PERSONAL:

Education: American University, B.A.; Sotheby's Institute, certificate.

ADDRESSES:

Home—New York, NY. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Worked at Sotheby's, New York, NY, and as an independent fine art researcher.

WRITINGS:

If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend (novel), Berkley Books (New York, NY), 2005.

Pug Hill (novel), Berkley Books (New York, NY), 2006.

Through Thick and Thin (novel), Berkley Books (New York, NY), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Alison Pace, who works in the field of fine art, is the author of several chick lit novels, including If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend. In an interview for the Chick Lit Books Web site, she was asked by Rian if she is a fan of Andy Warhol. Pace replied: "Yes, I am a fan of Andy Warhol's. The book, however, was more inspired by his writing than his artwork. There's a book by Andy Warhol called The Philosophy of Andy Warhol from A to B and Back Again. It's just filled with his very unique outlook on art, love and life. I had a lot of fun incorporating the different quotes into the book and working from them." Pace said that she has always wanted to write and that she likes chick lit novels about women in their twenties and thirties. Booklist contributor Diana Tixier Herald commented that the Warhol quotes that begin each chapter "add to the alluring art-world ambience of Pace's novel."

The protagonist is Jane Laine, who manages the Reese Gallery in New York and who specializes in contemporary art, but whose primary job is ordering Reese's peanut butter cups for her boss, whose name is Reese, for gallery shows. Jane's hope is to marry Jack Davis, drive a Volvo, live in Connecticut with two children named Blake and Lynne, and be a good mother and a happy wife. The dream ends when Jack begins dating a girl named Daisy who sends daisies as gifts.

Jane is sent on a trip to exhibit internationally the work of British sculptor Ian Rhys-Fitzsimmons, who, unknown to Jane, has a crush on her, and who has requested the tour as a way to be near her. As time passes, she begins to feel the same about him. Other characters include Jane's mother and her mother's pet schnauzers.

Dogs are central to Pace's next novel, Pug Hill. Hope McNeil works at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York as an art restorer. She has a crush on an unavailable coworker and is not happy with a man she met online, hedge fund manager Evan. Hope's greatest pleasure is visiting Pug Park in Central Park, a spot for Pug owners to gather. Even without a dog of her own, Hope finds these outings soothing. Herald wrote that this "very leisurely chick-lit novel is at its best when Hope is surrounded by dogs." Her parents ask her to speak at their fortieth wedding anniversary party, but Hope is terrified of speaking in public and also not looking forward to the presence of her beautiful but spoiled sister Darcy, whose boyfriend C.P. (Crested Possum), who pretends to be Native American, wants Darcy to move with him to a commune. Jane takes a class in public speaking at New School University. There she finds friends, confidence, and a new man.

A Kirkus Reviews contributor wrote that Pace "has invented an emotionally complex and winning heroine, even if the long, loving descriptions of pugs might try the reader's patience." Romantic Times Book Reviews Web site contributor Nasha Kanai opined: "Although the plot is predictable, most everyone will sympathize with Hope's situation." Library Journal reviewer Rebecca Vnuk wrote that this novel "has some smart and witty moments."

Through Thick and Thin, Pace's story of two sisters, was described as "simultaneously heartwarming and emotionally charged" by Sheri Melnick, writing for the Romantic Times Book Reviews Web site. Stephanie Cunningham lives in New Jersey and has just given birth to her first child. Anxious to shed some weight, she convinces her sister Meredith to go on the Zone diet with her, so that each can support the other, as they always have. Weight is not a temporary issue for Meredith, however. As a successful New York food critic, she not only has always loved to eat, it is now also part of her job. She blames her weight on her failure at love, but it is more than that, as she discovers as she begins to lower her expectations and enjoy herself. She gets a dog and falls for Gary, a yoga instructor very unlike the successful businessmen she has been pursuing. Stephanie discovers that her husband is addicted to prescription drugs and isn't sure how she feels about him now, even if he does finish rehab. The sisters have a falling out, but gain insight as they strengthen their relationship.

A Publishers Weekly critic felt that "Pace doesn't capture anything revolutionary; rather, she writes the ordinary well." A Kirkus Reviews contributor concluded: "Shot through with the melancholy of having to make adult choices, Pace's latest … has its share of bright spots." In reviewing the novel for the Dear Author Web site, Jayne wrote: "I was glad to see Meredith seemingly embrace who she is and what she looks like while Stephanie and her not-so-perfect husband Aubrey make the decision that their marriage is worth the effort to keep."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, January 1, 2005, Diana Tixier Herald, review of If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend, p. 822; May 1, 2006, Diana Tixier Herald, review of Pug Hill, p. 72.

Kirkus Reviews, April 15, 2006, review of Pug Hill, p. 375; June 15, 2007, review of Through Thick and Thin.

Library Journal, May 1, 2006, Rebecca Vnuk, review of Pug Hill, p. 82.

MBR Bookwatch, March, 2005, Harriet Klausner, review of If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend.

Publishers Weekly, June 11, 2007, review of Through Thick and Thin, p. 38.

ONLINE

Alison Pace Home Page,http://alisonpace.com (December 23, 2007).

BookLust,http://storms.typepad.com/booklust/2005/02/ (December 23, 2007), interview.

Chick Lit Books,http://chicklitbooks.com/ (December 23, 2007), Rian, "Interview with Alison Pace."

Dear Author,http://dearauthor.com/ (September 18, 2007), Jayne, review of Through Thick and Thin.

Mostly Fiction,http://www.mostlyfiction.com/ (June 12, 2005), Jennifer LeBlanc, review of If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend.

Romantic Times Book Reviews,http://www.romantictimes.com/ (December 23, 2007), Cindy Harrison, review of If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend, Nasha Kanai, review of Pug Hill, and Sheri Melnick, review of Through Thick and Thin.