The Necklace - by Cheryl Jarvis (Paperback)

About the Book

When a group of 13 middle-aged women friends decides to buy and share a $37,000 diamond necklace, they learn more than they ever thought possible about themselves, friendship, and the power of possibility.

Book Synopsis

One day in Ventura, California, Jonell McLain saw a beautiful diamond necklace in a jewelry store window and wondered: Why are personal luxuries so plentiful yet accessible to so few? What if we shared what we desired? Several weeks, dozens of phone calls, and one great leap of faith later, Jonell and twelve other women bought the necklace together-to be passed along among them all.

The dazzling treasure weaves in and out of each woman's life, reflecting her past, defining her present, making promises for her future. Lending sparkle in surprising and unexpected ways, the necklace comes to mean something dramatically different to each of the thirteen women. With vastly dissimilar histories and lives, they transcend their individual personalities and politics to join together in an uncommon journey-and what started as a quirky social experiment becomes something far richer and deeper.

Review Quotes

"Inspirational . . . The best way to honor the book's principles is to share your copy with a friend."--New York Times

"The Necklace is a fascinating journey into thirteen women's lives. Sweet and touching, it also manages to make you think about what really matters in life."--Kathie Lee Gifford

"Original and beautifully crafted . . . How this piece of jewelry transformed the lives of the participants is the subject of a highly readable book that is part memoir, part metaphor and all charm."--Tucson Citizen

"This moving book profiles a remarkable social experiment, where friendships and beliefs are uncovered and found to be just as strong as the stones being passed from neck to neck."--Redbook

"[A] must-have book . . . The Necklace could as easily have been titled The Sisterhood of the Traveling Diamonds."--New York Daily News

"A feel-good and thought-provoking book."--BookPage

"A gem of a story sparkles under The Necklace."--St. Louis Post-Dispatch

About the Author

Cheryl Jarvis is a journalist and essayist and the author of The Marriage Sabbatical: The Journey That Brings You Home. Her byline has appeared in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, Cosmopolitan, Redbook, and Reader's Digest. A former television producer and magazine and newspaper editor, she has taught writing at the University of Southern California and at Washington University and Webster University in St. Louis.