Wharton Journal

Issue date: 3/26/07 Section: Perspectives

Buyer Beware: When you crack open the spine on Girl Most Likely To, you better set aside the rest of the day, because you won't be able to put it down. Either schedule a few delectable hours to read it cover to cover, or face the inevitable consequences (missing subsequent plans, hours of sleep, or even in my case, a couple episodes of our 24 marathon in Costa Rica over spring break...).

Poonam Sharma, WG '07, deftly tackles the highly combustible confluence of family, career and relationships that most women in our late-20s face (and those of us in our mid-30s are vainly trying to put behind us), in her debut novel, Girl Most Likely To, which hit bookstores across the country (as well as Amazon) earlier this month. If the nonstop giggling and rave reviews from those of us who read it over Spring Break are any indication, this book will be a hit.

Sharma puts a fresh perspective on the conflicting tensions in the life of her multi-dimensional main character, Vina Chopra. Vina is an Equity Research Associate Extraordinaire at a nameless New York Investment Bank. She hails from Long Island, has traditional Punjabi parents, and is "thirty months away from turning thirty." Sound familiar? With a rare combination of Bridget Jones sensibility, Bend it Like Beckham ambition and a tight-knit group of friends evocative of Sex and the City, Vina vacillates between a series of arranged dates with nice Indian doctors by her well-meaning parents, and a life filled with enough friends, potential lovers and a night life to put Carrie Bradshaw to shame.

When the book opens, Vina is in a taxi on her way to yet another family wedding where her "parents will be seated where the love of her life ought to be." Poonam's description of her parents' meddling into her love life will ring true to anyone whose family has ever made their future marriage a family TAP Project, by scouring shaadi.com to set them up with a man whose "bio data" they have already approved.

From there, the book takes us on an engaging tour through topics as wide-ranging as inter-generational conflict, SEC subpoenas, and even firing an intern (But I'm sure that no Whartonite would ever find themselves in a similar pickle - not even those who aced Ethics...Don't understand me? READ THE BOOK!).

Sharma also shows us why Vina is the girl most likely to...

• Pass on the chance to hook up with a guy just because he's "good on paper"…(on biodata)...

• Embark on a journey of inner peace and solitude that takes her halfway across the world…

• Face an office scandal that could permanently end her career and be forced afterwards to actually consider applying to business school (Oh the horror!)...

In addition to the deft raconteur and satisfying character development inside Girl Most Likely To, Poonam sneaks in some snappy one-line zingers that are bound to be quotable beyond this article:

• In describing her relationship to her inner child and her I-Bank she says, "The firm doesn't pay me to get in touch with my inner child. They pay me well enough to hire a sitter."

• After being groped by a stranger on the street in the middle of a late night blackout she explains: "New Yorkers cannot be trusted in the dark…They're almost as mischievous as Australians are in the light." (No offense to the NZ/Australian club…Aussies, you had your moment Monday night when Raj Beri hated on the Irish, so we're even. Please keep your knickers unknotted and refrain from sending hate mail to the WJ, because in this case, 'mischievous' is actually a compliment.)

• In contemplating changing herself to be able to compete in a male-dominated world: "Some women believe that in order to compete with a man, you must essentially become one. But then again, some women refuse the epidural…Why would I want to be hairier, lonelier and more confused than I already am?"

So what I'm trying to say here is, yes, do BUY the book. Even yours truly, a tree hugging hippie, refuses to loan out her copy to anyone. Margins are slim in the publishing industry, so Sharma won't even be able to make a dent in the interest on her student loans if everyone altruistically loans the book to a friend. Economies of scale rule the day, people, and we want to see one of our own on Oprah, which means you've got to spread the word, tell a friend - and BUY the book!

It's under $15 - less than the cost of a Wharton 54 ticket! And you can learn more and read an excerpt through Amazon.com or www.poonam.info.

It's well worth your break from Sabre, memorizing the nuances between Order Up To and Made to Order models (And heck, second years, I don't see any of you in class these days, so take a break from shopping for Beach Week already and dive into this book instead). Even though Sharma's previous two books were on business (and you can check them out on her website, too), in my opinion, this is the one to read.

And if Sharma's live interview last week on NBC 10's "10 on 10" (the top-rated morning show in Philadelphia) was any hint, I'm betting she's the girl most likely to sell the movie rights on this book and then come back to school and teach a class about it.

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