TOW #12: The Bling Ring by Nancy Jo Sales (Part 1)

       Imagine being a teenager living in Calabasas, California, an affluent city in the hills of Los Angeles. The average income is about $116,000, more than twice the national average. You could have anything you desired, and more. But for seven teenagers, it doesn't stop there. In 2009, word had gotten out that big names in Hollywood--Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom, Rachel Bilson, Lindsay Lohan-- had been robbed of clothing, accessories, money, resulting in $3 million stolen. For over a year, the alleged robbers had not been found. So then why would seven wealthy teenagers feel the need to steal over $3 million from celebrity homes? Nancy Jo Sales, a Vanity Fair journalist, took a trip to Calabasas to dig deeper into the alleged group of teenagers referred to as "the bling ring," who risked everything they had to get closer to the real Hollywood lifestyle.
      With the use of detailed imagery, statistics, and anecdotes, Sales reveals the secrets and ambitions behind the greedy teenagers. Without detailed imagery, the book would lack any feel of the Hollywood life. For readers who have never been to Hollywood or have insight into the prosperous homes, they would not be able to visualize the immense wealth of these Hollywood homes. While breaking into Paris Hilton's home, Sales describes to the readers that "There was a lot of pink and there were crystal chandeliers in almost every room" (7). The imagery allows the audience to visualize the scale of wealth the teenagers already have, and what they are burglarizing from. The use of statistics is beneficial to the audience on the insight of the true case. This is a true story. Anecdotes are woven throughout the story, mostly from the view of Nick Prugo, follower of ring leader Rachel Lee. This gives insight into the real teenager thoughts, and why the reasons behind the crazy idea string of crimes. Prugo explained that with every new item stolen, they were that much closer to living the Hollywood lifestyle.
   So far, I think this book is very well-written and Sales is doing an awesome job of following the story as well as following the real case. She seams the two concepts perfectly together. There are parts of the actual burglaries written about, and then it goes deeper into the court case. There is no way for these teenagers to justify what they did, but Sales gives reasoning by including their thoughts on becoming closer to Hollywood.