"Confessions of a City Girl"

I recently read "Confessions of a City Girl" by Suzana S and thought I would write a review about it.

The book tells the story of Suzana S and leads on from her columns as 'City Girl" that were published in TheLondonPaper before it closed. Suzana S (real name Barbara Stcherbatcheff) graduated from Colgate University with a music degree and went on to achieve her ambition of becoming a City Trader. The book charts the pitfalls she encountered along the way, her marriage and divorce and her constant battle against sexism in the workplace. I didn't expect much from it, as I have a pretty hostile view of bankers  and suspected it may have been an attempt to recreate the magic of a Miss C. Bradshaw. However, I was pleasantly surprised as it was actually an inspirational read.

I absolutely loved and felt inspired by the feminist message in this book. Suzana (I'll call her by her 'character' name) continually fought against men who refused to offer her any insight into the profession let alone offer her a job as a trader. Although they were quite happy to offer her another type of job - lovely. She refused to give up, did not sleep with anyone and kept and used her femininity rather than dressing like a man. In addition, she doesn't shy away from feminism; she actively strives for and expects equality rather than denying that she is feminist because of the dated assumption that all feminists are radical.

The book gives a sharp, witty and self-deprecating insight into the City. Highlighting the gambling, drinking, luxuries and ridiculous wealth but also the stress, extra-marital affairs and self-destruction that accompanies trading. It also explores roles other than trading and documents the cliques within the City that may have worsened the financial crisis. Personally I don't think I could hack working with numbers all day as I thrive when being creative. However, prior to reading "Confessions of a City Girl" I had never considered that my skill set could be applied to roles within the financial sector. Perhaps if I had read a book like this in my career classes at school rather than the '... you're good at English, here's what you can do sheet' I would have explored what else was out there for me. The outcome would probably be the same, I could never work in the City, but I do thinks it's this kind of thing that should form the careers curriculum.

Most of all, I found the book inspiring because Suzana graduated with a Music degree and felt, like I have, that people assumed she wouldn't be successful. I graduated with a Drama degree and although I know that I learnt a great deal, including practical skills, many people have dismissed it as a Mickey-Mouse course. It's also inspiring that she had to start at the bottom and didn't always find it easy but that she got there in the end. I'm enjoying my internship but there are moments when I wish I was in a paid role, so it's good to know I'm not the only one to find the beginning of their career difficult at times.

There are problems with the book though. It's hard to get around the fact that the author made a lot of money from trading before she left to be a Derivative Consultant (read the book if you want to understand what one is). I don't think it's fair to berate someone for being successful and she obviously worked very hard. Equally you could say it's not mine or anyone else's business how big a bonus she received. On the other hand though, people who had nothing to do with the financial sector are suffering because of it's mismanagement. It's impossible to ignore that while I'm doing an internship and the majority of graduates I know are unemployed or doing temp work that the author played a part in a systematic gamble with the global economy. Towards the end of the book she suggests reasons the financial crisis could have been avoided (like frontline staff talking and listening to backroom staff) but fails to outline or hint at how much she earned or show remorse.

Overall my problems with the book stem from my problems and anger with some members of the City and this doesn't take away from what I got out of the book. If it wasn't about the City in the middle of the financial crisis, if it was about another industry it would be a truly inspirational read and I would recommend it to anyone beginning his or her career.

"Confessions of a City Girl" by Suzana S was published by Virgin Books in 2009.

Click here to go to the author's website.

Another review can be read here