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Can you beat Pippa Middleton's party planning tips? Can you beat Pippa Middleton's party planning tips?
(35 minutes later)
It's official. Despite the £400,000 advance, a serialisation in the Daily Mail, a huge publicity campaign and the glossy photos of rustic picnics and aspirational living (53, apparently, of the author herself), Pippa Middleton's lifestyle book is a flop. Celebrate: A Year of Festivities for Families and Friends, Middleton's first outing as a writer, has sold under 2,000 copies in its first week and sits at 177 on the Amazon bestsellers list below, so the Telegraph reports, Peppa Pig's Christmas Wish. It's official. Despite the £400,000 advance, a serialisation in the Mail on Sunday, a huge publicity campaign and the glossy photos of rustic picnics and aspirational living (53, apparently, of the author herself), Pippa Middleton's lifestyle book is a flop. Celebrate: A Year of Festivities for Families and Friends, Middleton's first outing as a writer, has sold under 2,000 copies in its first week and sits at 177 on the Amazon bestsellers list below, so the Telegraph reports, Peppa Pig's Christmas Wish.
The publishers may have been confident, exporting the lifestyle book all around the world, but critics were not impressed. It has been slated almost universally for its embarrassingly obvious lack of imagination. The Guardian referred to it as a "cut and paste" job, while others have made reference to some of the more banal pieces of advice the book offers. Turkeys, for example, are "perfect for feeding larger gatherings", while drawers should be "packed full of useful odds and ends".The publishers may have been confident, exporting the lifestyle book all around the world, but critics were not impressed. It has been slated almost universally for its embarrassingly obvious lack of imagination. The Guardian referred to it as a "cut and paste" job, while others have made reference to some of the more banal pieces of advice the book offers. Turkeys, for example, are "perfect for feeding larger gatherings", while drawers should be "packed full of useful odds and ends".
So, as Middleton's book flops, we'd like Comment is free readers to tell us their most imaginative party planning tips. Who knows, we might get a six-figure book deal out of it too.So, as Middleton's book flops, we'd like Comment is free readers to tell us their most imaginative party planning tips. Who knows, we might get a six-figure book deal out of it too.