ShopgirlRecommendations

Steve Martin, one of our country's most recognized and well-loved performers, has written a novella that is surprisingly insightful about relationships and life. When it comes to the inner workings of the human heart, Martin is incredibly smart.

Mirabelle is the title's "shopgirl," a young woman with a wall-flowerish beauty who works behind the glove counter at Neiman Marcus "selling goods that no one buys anymore..."

Mirabelle fascinates because she isn't glamorous, forceful, or self-aggrandizing. She is somewhat lost, slightly off-kilter, and very bashful. Still, there's something about her that I can't get enough of.

Ray Porter, a rich businessman nearly twice her age, is captivated by Mirabelle. As they hesitantly begin a relationship, they both struggle to understand the language of love, with humorous and devastating results. Shopgirl is a work of disarming sensitivity, filled with the type of sharp, insightful remarks that have garnered Steve Martin critical acclaim.