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BOOKSHELF

Helping Chicks To Fly

	Emily Miles Terry ’89

Not long after women had been admitted to the College, in the mid-1980s, a movement to ban single-sex organizations gained momentum. As president of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, Emily Miles Terry ’89 was involved in defending the right of her sorority to remain single-sex, believing that it was important for women to have their own support network. More than a decade later, Terry still feels strongly about the importance of women supporting each other, and this appreciation for female solidarity and bonding has inspired Terry and her friend, Ame Mahler Beanland, to coauthor two bestselling books, including Nesting: It’s a Chick Thing (Workman Press, 2004, $13.95).

“Most women we know love their homes and apartments but have demanding careers and lives,” Terry said, explaining the idea behind Nesting, “We decided to write a book that focused on what we call ‘the four pillars of nesting — entertaining, decorating, gardening and cooking — and fill it with real advice from real women.” After interviewing thousands of women to collect tips, recipes and shortcut ideas, Terry and Beanland compiled a handbook for the “postfeminist domestic expert” who can provide “genuine hospitality that doesn’t require any floor mopping.”

Whether it’s “chick-tested ideas” on how to make easy holiday decorations or lessons from the “Queen of Leftovers” on squeezing the most value out of that “half-dead meal,” Nesting offers countless anecdotes and advice for the career woman. The book features personal stories from famous women such as comedienne and actress Ellen DeGeneres, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Anna Quindlen ’74 Barnard and country singer Dolly Parton. Terry also found help from Jill Pollack ’89 and Jody Collens Fidler ’89, who contributed their ideas and writing to Nesting as well as Terry and Beanland’s first Chick Ink book, It’s a Chick Thing: Celebrating the Wild Side of Women’s Friendship (Conari Press, 2000, $15.95).

Terry and Beanland established Chick Ink (www.chickstyle.com), a company dedicated to “celebrating friendship, hospitality, personal style and all things chickcentric.” The website promotes their work and also collects advice from women around the country. The coauthors are under contract for a third book with their
current publisher.

The success of Nesting lies, perhaps, in its ability to appeal to a wide range of readers. Having traveled to more than 35 cities to promote the book, Terry and Beanland expected their main readers to be women from 20 to 40 years old. “What surprised us,” said Terry, “was how many women in their 50s, 60s and even 70s came to our book signings.” Another bonus was that Terry, a public relations specialist, was able to use her PR experience to effectively promote the book. In marketing get-togethers for women, such as “fix-up-your-Nest fests” and “Chicktail parties,” Terry and Beanland have a simple objective in mind: “to encourage women to connect with their girlfriends and set aside time away from jobs and family for themselves and the things they enjoy doing or discussing.”

Terry and Beanland met in the early ’90s at a small West Coast publisher’s office and quickly became friends. One day, they heard a story on BBC Radio about two women who decided to travel around the world, but before their trip painted their toenails blue. During the trip, their plane crashed and the women were separated in the melee, ending up at a hospital where no one spoke English. Luckily, a doctor noticed their identical polish, and the friends were reunited. The story, which showed Terry and Beanland that “seemingly trivial girlish acts have a higher purpose” of bringing women together, inspired them to write Chick Thing. Much like Nesting, this collection of stories shares the many ways women have fun together and exalts the sanctity of female friendships.

Terry lives in Brookline, Mass., with her husband, Dave Terry ’90, and their children, Julia (6) and Henry (4). She spends her free time mostly with her children, but “sets aside time for two book clubs, a writers group and an annual trip with some of her best chickfriends from Columbia.” She also is CCT’s 1989 class correspondent.

Peter Kang ’05

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