Haven't seen the book yet, but I like the title. "Beverly Hills Adjacent" is a debut novel with strong local flavor and media bloodlines: it's by Jennifer Steinhauer, the New York Times bureau chief in Los Angeles, and Jessica Hendra, the author of "How To Cook Your Daughter: A Memoir." St. Martin's Press describes the book, out this week, as set during TV pilot season in L.A. The lead characters are an insecure actor and his wife, a UCLA poetry professor "whose job...makes her in but not of Los Angeles, with its illogical pecking order and relentless tribal customs." Her life apparently changes when a wildly successful producer begins lavishing her with attention. Publishers Weekly says it "casts a reproachful gaze on the television industry," and it sounds like it might be entertaining for foodies as well.
More by Kevin Roderick:
Ralph Lawler of the Clippers and the age of AquariusRiding the Expo Line to USC 'just magical'
Last bastion of free parking? Loyola Marymount to charge students
Matt Kemp, Dodgers and Kings start big weekend the right way
LA Times writers revisit their '92 riots observations
Recent Books stories on LA Observed:
Bestselling books of the week in SoCal storesThe other horrible April 29 date in Los Angeles history
Expo Line misses book festival by that much
Portrait of a Bookstore to close on Tujunga Avenue
Fiction does have a winner at LA Times Book Prizes
New at LA Observed
Follow us on Twitter
On the Media Page
Go to Media
LA Biz Observed
Go to LA Biz Observed
Sign up for daily email from LA Observed
Last look at Van Nuys location