Name: Ann Brashares
Age: 44
Neighborhood: Upper East Side
Occupation: Writer, most recently of Sisterhood Everlasting, the fifth book in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series.
Who’s your favorite New Yorker, living or dead, real or fictional?
My husband. He was born and raised in Manhattan, with aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents within a mile radius. He took a cab uptown to college. When we moved to Brooklyn in the nineties it was as though we were moving back to Lithuania.
What’s the best meal you’ve eaten in New York?
My first dinner at Babbo. I remember a pasta dish involving lamb and mint. It made me think of my Lebanese grandfather.
In one sentence, what do you actually do all day in your job?
Avoid writing/pretend to write/actually write.
What was your first job in New York?
I worked as an assistant in a tiny law practice that advocated for people with disabilities.
What’s the last thing you saw on Broadway?
The Royal Family (my brother-in-law and old-school friend were in it).
Do you give money to panhandlers?
Seldomly.
What’s your drink?
I love pink Champagne.
How often do you prepare your own meals?
My husband and I cook most nights of the week.
What’s your favorite medication?
Um … vitamins? I’ve been pregnant or breastfeeding for the last year, so not taking much medicine.
What’s hanging above your sofa?
A Jacob Collins nude.
How much is too much to spend on a haircut?
I have uncomplicated hair and get it cut only once every year or two, so I am pretty out of it. I think $150 is a lot. Is $150 a lot?
When’s bedtime?
I’m a night owl by nature. I’d stay up till three every morning if I didn’t have to get up early. As it is I’m in bed by one.
Which do you prefer, the old Times Square or the new Times Square?
I like the new traffic patterns. I’m getting a kick out of people lounging around in the middle of Broadway like it’s a park.
What do you think of Donald Trump?
He built a big, pink phallus of a building across Third Avenue from where I live. That’s what I think.
What do you hate most about living in New York?
The stench of summer garbage.
Who is your mortal enemy?
The guy in Starbucks who stole my iPod.
When’s the last time you drove a car?
A couple days ago.
How has the Wall Street crash affected you?
I lost a lot of money. My accountant calls them capital losses.
Times, Post, or Daily News?
The Times. I felt sort of prissy as I wrote that.
Where do you go to be alone?
I have four children. There is no such place.
What makes someone a New Yorker?
Our inability to stand on the sidewalk while waiting for the light to change.
