the golden ladder.
this post in partnership with St. Martin’s Press, and all words and opinions are my own. thank you for supporting the brands that help keep sfgirlbybay going with fresh content every day.
picture this: It’s 2006 in the Manhattan of the young and glamorous. Money and class are colliding in a city that is about to go over a financial precipice and take much of the country with it. At 26, bright, funny and socially anxious Evelyn Beegan is determined to carve her own path in life and free herself from the influence of her social-climbing mother, who propelled her through prep school and onto the Upper East Side. Evelyn has long felt like an outsider to her privileged peers, but when she gets a job at a social network aimed at the elite, she’s forced to embrace them. this is the new book, everybody rise by author stephanie clifford, a Loeb-award-winning reporter at the New York Times, where she has covered business, media and New York City. who better then, to write this very funny, and often poignant tale of social climbing in manhattan? her debut novel offers a thoroughly modern take on classic American themes – money, ambition, family, friendship – and on the universal longing to fit in.
in everybody rise, stephanie writes the story of evelyn’s Recruitment of new members for People Like Us, a social networking site, so we decided to create a cocktail recipe for you in her honor — the golden ladder! i looked to cocktail aficionado ashley rose conway to create a delicious cocktail we envisioned these social climbers sipping, and she crafted the perfect concoction for everybody rise — complete with gold leaf shavings! in the book Evelyn steps into a privilaged land of Adirondack camps, Newport cottages and Southampton clubs thick with socialites and Wall Streeters. Despite herself, Evelyn finds the lure of belonging intoxicating and starts trying to pass as old money herself. When her father, a crusading class-action lawyer, is indicted for bribery, Evelyn must contend with her own family’s downfall as she keeps up appearances in her new life, grasping with increasing desperation as the ground underneath her begins to give way. a wonderful story of social climbing and class — much like an edith wharton 19th-century novel, but set in the 21st century. a great read, getting glowing reviews — so mix yourself a deliciously decedent golden ladder cocktail (recipe is just below), sit back and read everybody rise.
• styling, photography and cocktail recipe by @ashr0se of craft & cocktails; photo of stephanie clifford by Elena Seibert Photography.
