Where We Belong (Hardcover)

Bestselling author Emily Giffin, who has been called a "modern-day Jane Austen," writes about friendship and family--and the complexities sometimes inherent in those connections. She told one journalist, "That's what life is all about. You have what you do [to earn money], but life is really the sum of all your relationships." Giffin, the daughter of a Sears executive and a librarian, was born in Baltimore, Maryland, but when she was a teen, her family moved to Naperville, Illinois, which she often refers to as her hometown. She studied history and literature at Wake Forest University, graduating with a bachelor's degree in 1994. Although she had long harbored dreams of becoming a writer, she felt some pressure to pursue a more conventional path and enrolled at the University of Virginia School of Law. In 1997 she passed the bar exam and moved to New York City to work at a large firm. She had not, however, totally given up her dream of writing, and in her spare time she penned a young-adult novel. Although it was rejected by several publishers upon its completion, she persevered. In 2001, after she had finished paying off her student loans, she quit her job and moved to London to write full-time. (She was booked on one of the first international flights to leave the U.S. after the terrorist attacks of 9/11.) In 2004 her debut novel, SOMETHING BORROWED, was published and quickly landed on the bestseller lists. In 2011 the book, about two young women who become involved with the same man, was made into a big-budget movie starring Kate Hudson and Ginnifer Goodwin. Several of her subsequent bestsellers have also been optioned by Hollywood. In addition to her writing prowess, Giffin is known for her fashion sense and sociable personality, and she is often featured in the style pages of the newspaper, as well as in the book section.