Entertainment, Books - Navy Times

‘City’ never sleeps in Bushnell’s work

Candace Bushnell dished with USA Today’s Carol Memmott from her home in New York.

Question: “One Fifth Avenue,” an actual address in Manhattan, is at the center of your new novel. What’s your fascination with the building?

Answer: A co-op building is a microcosm, in a sense, of New York City or any city or town. I live in the (Greenwich) Village in a little co-op building. It’s that small-town aspect of New York that I wanted to explore.

Q: Who lives there?

A: It’s a very, very tony address, a very glamorous art deco building that is known for having prominent artists, actors, writers, composers and probably rock stars as residents.

Q: Would you like to move in?

A: I would love to live there. It’s a wonderful building.

Q: In “One Fifth Avenue,” Lola wants her parents to get her an apartment in the West Village “because that’s where Carrie Bradshaw (of ‘Sex and the City’) lived.” Does Carrie still bring young women to New York looking for love and a career?

A: Absolutely. The city still inspires young women to come here, and they have a completely unrealistic idea about it because of what they’ve seen on the screen. Lola is 22 years old, and she would certainly have seen “Sex and the City” or even grown up watching it.

Q: Is it hard to be so associated with one book, or is it all good?

A: I think that in popular culture, “Sex and the City” became a phenomenon, and that’s wonderful. But “Lipstick Jungle,” “Four Blondes” and “Trading Up” have all been best sellers, and I’m very pleased. “Lipstick Jungle” is a series for NBC, and that’s a thrill.

Q: The “SATC” movie was a big hit this summer. Hoping for a sequel?

A: I loved the movie and think it would be fantastic, but it’s a decision that is completely out of my hands, and I have no inside information.

Q: Do you hang out with Sarah Jessica Parker?

A: I see her every now and again. She’s a lovely person and I absolutely adore her. So every time I see her I’m thrilled.

Q: You’re an executive producer for “Lipstick Jungle” (with Brooke Shields, Kim Raver and Lindsay Price). What can we expect from the show this year?

A: It gets deeper. All three characters have big changes in their lives, and that happens in the first couple of episodes. We also have Mary Tyler Moore playing Wendy Healy’s (Shields) mother.

Q: You’re turning 50 this year. Ready?

A: I feel great. I don’t feel the least bit nervous about it. What is it they say? Fifty is the new 30? It’s grounding. Throughout my 40s, I felt more and more that I’m able to do what I want to do in my life. I feel really lucky to write books, have a TV show and a radio show and have a voice.

“One Fifth Avenue” by Candace Bushnell

(Voice, $25.95)

What it’s about: “A novel about a hedge-fund genius and his wife who buy the penthouse at tony One Fifth Avenue, riling longtime residents who are embroiled in their own petty rivalries and botched love affairs.

Talking points: Bushnell is hot again, thanks to fans who strapped on their Manolos to see “Sex and the City” the movie over the summer. And “Lipstick Jungle,” based on a Bushnell novel, returns to NBC Sept. 24. Now she’s back with another steamy fictional story about love and lust in Manhattan.

A taste: “That’s the difference between girls and women: Girls find men fascinating. Women know better.”

On sale: Sept. 22