What: A party celebrating the publication of novelist Gioia Diliberto’s latest, The Collection.
Where: The Georgetown home of Maureen Dowd
When: September 15, 6:30 to 8:30 PM
Who:Gioia Diliberto and her husband, Chicago Magazine editor Dick Babcock, were in town for the party, which was attended by a small but boldfaced crowd, including Bob Schieffer, Gwen Ifill, Howard Kurtz and his wife, Sherri Annis, Linda Douglass and her husband, super-lawyer John Phillips, Franklin Foer, and Ben Bradlee. For many of the guests, the event was a quick neighborhood popover.
Scene: With Politics & Prose selling books in the parlor, the party spilled out of the house into the tiny, well-maintained garden out back. The weather was perfect, and the fashionable set befit the book’s subject (see below). Guests mingled, laughed, and maneuvered through the tight quarters even as the event’s hostess appeared fashionably late to her own fete.
Food: Indoors on Dowd’s dining room table were plentiful snacks, dips, and spreads.
Drink: The backyard bar served drinks so stiff that even Christopher Hitchens asked for more soda in his scotch and soda.
Book Synopsis:The Collection, Diliberto’s second novel, is set in post-World War I Paris and focuses on a fictitious young worker for none other than Gabrielle Coco Chanel herself—think “Devil Wears Prada” with a more serious and literary historical flair.
Ratings (out of 5): Boldface names: 2 Swankiness: 2 Food and drink: 2.5 Exclusivity: 4 Total score: 10.5 (out of 20)
Don’t Miss Another Big Story—Get Our Weekend Newsletter
Our most popular stories of the week, sent every Saturday.
A Night Out: Dowd Hosts A ‘Chanel’ Celebration
Washingtonians gathered Saturday night to celebrate the new novel by Chicago author Gioia Diliberto.
What: A party celebrating the publication of novelist Gioia Diliberto’s latest, The Collection.
Where: The Georgetown home of Maureen Dowd
When: September 15, 6:30 to 8:30 PM
Who: Gioia Diliberto and her husband, Chicago Magazine editor Dick Babcock, were in town for the party, which was attended by a small but boldfaced crowd, including Bob Schieffer, Gwen Ifill, Howard Kurtz and his wife, Sherri Annis, Linda Douglass and her husband, super-lawyer John Phillips, Franklin Foer, and Ben Bradlee. For many of the guests, the event was a quick neighborhood popover.
Scene: With Politics & Prose selling books in the parlor, the party spilled out of the house into the tiny, well-maintained garden out back. The weather was perfect, and the fashionable set befit the book’s subject (see below). Guests mingled, laughed, and maneuvered through the tight quarters even as the event’s hostess appeared fashionably late to her own fete.
Food: Indoors on Dowd’s dining room table were plentiful snacks, dips, and spreads.
Drink: The backyard bar served drinks so stiff that even Christopher Hitchens asked for more soda in his scotch and soda.
Book Synopsis: The Collection, Diliberto’s second novel, is set in post-World War I Paris and focuses on a fictitious young worker for none other than Gabrielle Coco Chanel herself—think “Devil Wears Prada” with a more serious and literary historical flair.
Ratings (out of 5):
Boldface names: 2
Swankiness: 2
Food and drink: 2.5
Exclusivity: 4
Total score: 10.5 (out of 20)
Don’t Miss Another Big Story—Get Our Weekend Newsletter
Our most popular stories of the week, sent every Saturday.
Most Popular in News & Politics
Check Out This Huge Crochet Mural of Kamala Harris at the Wharf
DC Is Replacing Its Current Vaccine Sign-Up System
Washington’s Most Influential People
Trump Hotel Employees Reveal What It Was Really Like Catering to the Right Wing Elite
Jonathan Swan’s Face Is the 2020 Meme We Needed
Washingtonian Magazine
March 2021: The Influencers
View IssueSubscribe
Get Us on Social
Get Us on Social
Related
Video From Fall Real Estate Market Update With Local Leaders
Washingtonian Real Estate Virtual Happy Hour
Videos from Washingtonian’s Wellness Day
Washingtonian Wellness Day
More from News & Politics
Glenstone Will Host Its First Touring Exhibit When It Reopens This Spring
Check Out This Huge Crochet Mural of Kamala Harris at the Wharf
DC Is Replacing Its Current Vaccine Sign-Up System
Howard Is Renaming Its Law Library After Alumnus and Civil Rights Figure Vernon Jordan
There’s a New Mural of Amanda Gorman in Dupont Circle
The Week Covid Changed Washington
A New DC Program Lets Housebound Seniors Sign Up for Zoom Sessions With Rescue Animals
Axios Political Reporter Alexi McCammond Is Teen Vogue’s New Editor