There are a few book in this world that are atemporal and very much enjoyable. Lisa Birnbach's The Official Preppy Handbook (also known as TOPH) is by far one of my favourites.
Written in a half-satirical half-serious manner makes it a highly enjoyable read for anyone who is at least slightly familiar with the Prep culture of the United States. I personally dislike it when people over-analyze it in their reviews as I think Mrs. Birnbach wrote it such that it requires taking it just as it was written, flippantly serious.
I have attached the scanned version of the book for all of you who are having a harder and harder time to secure a copy, although I would suggest eBay or Amazon (new versions start at $179.99 however) if you would like a physical copy of the book.
Besides some of the less updated items in the book, like stores and addresses, most of the information is very much current and applicable although I sheepishly remind you not to take it too seriously ( we all know from history where that lead in the past when another book that chronicled it was followed word-by-word) ! Some of you might discover, either to your liking or to your dismay that you are a prep, while some of you might learn a little about the world that has always seemed so inaccesible for us mere mortals.
If you would like to convert to "Prepianity" however, I would suggest investing seriously in some etiquette classes (The Emily Post Institute can do wonders with all but the most entrenched of troglodytes), a country club membership and of course Prep attire (Ralph Lauren, Rugby Ralph Lauren, J.Crew, L.L.Bean, Vineyard Vines and sometimes Lacoste are all great choices IMO).
Comments are always appreciated. Let me know what you think about the book, do you think it's contents still apply to our modern society? Is Prep dying out?
I would also like to introduce you to the long awaited True Prep: It's a Whole New Old world, which is an updated-to-modern-times version of the TOPH. Order True Prep here.
True Prep looks at how the old guard of natural-fiber-loving, dog-worshipping, G&T-soaked preppies adapts to the new order of the Internet, cell phones, rehab, political correctness, reality TV and…polar fleece
Authors Lisa Birnbach and Chip Kidd, giving us a glimpse at the process of getting True Prep ready for publishing!
Here it is:
