NSFW: A Novel

Amazon.com Review\nAn Amazon Best Book of July 2022: Compelling contradictions abound in Isabel Kaplan’s novel NSFW, which sucks you in from the start. Take the co-dependent relationship the unnamed female protagonist has with her stoned mother, a famous women’s rights lawyer who forced her daughter on a diet at age 10. Or the slacker male executive who calls in sick with a hang nail, and gets promoted shortly after. The hero of this novel isn’t a hero at all—she’s a relatable young millennial trying to make her way in the world before there was #MeToo language to describe the subtle (and not-so-subtle) double standards women face, set against the backdrop of a Hollywood gig “people would kill for”—that’s not so glamorous when you pull back the curtain. I’ve been counting down the days for this book to be released so I have more people with whom to discuss the cliffhanger ending, which I can’t stop thinking about. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor\nNATIONAL BESTSELLER • SHORTLISTED FOR THE CENTER FOR FICTION'S FIRST NOVEL PRIZE • “An intoxicating exploration of male-dominated workplaces . . . NSFW is gripping, with a lot to unpack, making it excellent book-club fodder.”―TIME\nBlisteringly sharp and hypersmart―meet Isabel Kaplan’s searing debut novel about a young woman trying to succeed in Hollywood without selling her soul.\nFrom the outside, the unnamed protagonist in NSFW appears to be the vision of success. She has landed an entry-level position at a leading TV network that thousands of college grads would kill for. And sure, she has much to learn. The daughter of a prominent feminist attorney, she grew up outside the industry. But she’s resourceful and hardworking. What could go wrong?\nAt first, the high adrenaline work environment motivates her. Yet as she climbs the ranks, she confronts the reality of creating change from the inside. Her points only get attention when echoed by male colleagues; she hears whispers of abuse and sexual misconduct. Her mother says to keep her head down until she’s the one in charge―a scenario that seems idealistic at best, morally questionable at worst. When her personal and professional lives collide, threatening both the network and her future, she must decide what to protect: the career she’s given everything for or the empowered woman she claims to be.\nFusing page-turning prose with dark humor and riveting commentary on the truths of starting out professionally, Isabel Kaplan’s NSFW is an unflinching exploration of the gray area between empowerment and complicity. The result is a stunning portrait of what success costs in today’s patriarchal world, asking us: Is it ever worth it?