Jen Lancaster's Bitter is the New Black, at first glance, appears to be just another title in the growing list of "chick-lit" books, but instead creates a sub-genre that is both distinctive and hilarious. Lancaster's book is a memoir, and while it does read like fiction, the underlying reality of the author's story gives the book a depth and strength that chick-lit novels can lack. Bitter is the New Black is an excellent example of creative non-fiction, in that it blends fiction and non-fiction techniques into a satisfying read.

Jen Lancaster stars in the story of her life after she's been fired from a high-paying, fast-paced job in corporate sales. Like many other people discovered, finding a new job post-9/11 did not come easily for Jen, who narrates the highs and lows of her two-year job search with a biting, sarcastic sense of humor, creating a distinctive voice and tone for the book.

While the job search is the ostensible theme, a secondary theme develops as Jen slowly changes from a high-energy, self-involved, selfish yuppie to a frugal, more self-aware, and self-assured person. Following the progress of both these themes create a strong undercurrent of tension that flows throughout the book and creates a fast-paced, forward moving narrative, as the reader awaits Jen's next exploit.

The book is written in a very close-in first person that echoes the style of many blogs, where strangers post their innermost secrets to the entire world. Lancaster, who started a blog during her unemployment, uses this intimate style to great effect, bringing her audience into her world with extremely personal and specific details on her clothes, apartment, boyfriend, dogs, and job interviews.

The book packs in a wide variety of Lancaster's experiences while jobless, so that the job search does not become a repetitive litany of job interviews and cover letters. Her marriage; adoption of two dogs; search for a new, less expensive apartment; and weight gain all provide equal opportunity fodder for Lancaster's ready wit. In true comedic structure, she leads her readers from her initial high point of confident, well-paid employment, through the lows of drinking wine out of a box and possible eviction, and back to the relative high of solvency and the discovery of a new career.

While the continuous sarcasm might be a bit much for some readers, overall, Bitter is the New Black is a fun, funny, and realistic look at the realities of being unemployed, and breaks away from traditional "chick-lit" with its honest and frank commentaries on one woman's life post 9-11.