The Partner Track

A young attorney must choose between the prestige of partnership and the American Dream that she--and her immigrant parents--have come so close to achieving in this riveting debut. In the eyes of her corporate law firm, Ingrid Yung is a twofer. As a Chinese American woman about to be ushered into the elite rank of partner, she's the face of Parsons Valentine & Hunt LLP's recruiting brochures--their treasured Golden Girl. But behind the firm's welcoming fa├°ade lies the scotch-sipping, cigar-smoking old-boy network that shuts out lawyers like Ingrid. To compensate, Ingrid gamely plays in the softball league, schmoozes in the corporate cafeteria, and puts in the billable hours--until a horrifically offensive performance at the law firm's annual summer outing throws the carefully constructed image way out of equilibrium. Scrambling to do damage control, Parsons Valentine announces a new diversity initiative and commands a reluctant Ingrid to spearhead the effort, taking her priority away from the enormous deal that was to be the final step in securing partnership. For the first time, Ingrid finds herself at odds with her colleagues--including her handsome, golden-boy boyfriend--in a clash of class, race, and sexual politics.

About the Author :
Helen Wan is associate general counsel at the Time Inc. division of Time Warner Inc. Before that, she practiced corporate law and media law at law firms in New York. Born in California and raised near Washington, DC, Wan is a graduate of Amherst College and the University of Virginia School of Law. Her essays and reviews of fiction have been published in the Washington Post and elsewhere. She lives in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, with her husband and son. Emily Woo Zeller is a performing artist and yogi currently based in New York City. Her voice-over career includes work in animated film and television in Southeast Asia. She has also worked as an actor, singer, dancer, and choreographer on stage throughout the United States and Southeast Asia. When not in the studio or on stage, Emily is a yoga teacher with a focus on holistic approaches to health. She holds a degree from the University of California-Berkeley.

Review :
The Partner Track is a marvelous story about female ambition and power, about betrayal, identity, and the conflict between self-interest and desire. In short: all the big, human stuff. Read it. -- "Alison Clement, author of Twenty Questions" A master storyteller, Wan paints a realistic and immersing portrait of the elite world of corporate law. She had me rooting for Ingrid's success and her happiness from the first chapter. -- "Real Simple" A wholly engrossing behind-the-scenes look at real life behind the pomp, power, and prestige of a high-powered law firm that wants to still play by a 1950s rule book. -- "Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus, New York Times bestselling coauthors of The Nanny Diaries" Behind Helen Wan's wit and sparkling prose is a poignant and at times painfully honest tale of loyalty, ambition, and sacrifice. Funny, fragile, sometimes bold, often unsure, Ingrid Yung is one of those unforgettable heroines that you actually miss, like a dear friend, when the story's over. -- "Ann Leary, New York Times bestselling author" Engaging and suspenseful...[Helen Wan] dissects the tokens of status in this world--who sits with whom in the dining room, whose offices are on the 'good side of the building'--in a manner that's reminiscent of Tom Wolfe. -- "Wall Street Journal" Smart, incisive, and fast-paced, The Partner Track is a sparklingly readable look at the inner workings of a Wall Street law firm--from the vantage point of a brainy, beautiful, and self-doubting Asian American associate. Wan has the remarkable ability to make you feel as if 'you are there'--inside the law firm, inside protagonist Ingrid Yung's head. I did not want to put this book down. -- "Susan Cain, New York Times bestselling author" What a terrific debut novel. Ingrid Yung is a fresh, funny, and fearless heroine. Her razor-sharp wit and keen observations of gender, race, and class politics in corporate America make The Partner Track an entertaining, engrossing, and ultimately deeply compelling read. -- "Cristina Alger, author of The Darlings"