The Jewels of Tessa Kent Book Report

Book Written by Judith Krantz

Submitted by: Nick Ranny Gaceta

Submitted to:Maam Edna culbongan
INTRODUCTION:
The story unfolds on a classic Krantz background amagic carpet of
gorgeous entertainment and sumptuous events. Yet, at its core, The Jewels of
Tessa Kent is an engrossing, deeply moving, and ultimately inspiring tale of two
women bound by blood yet torn apart by their deepest emotions. Tessa Kent, an
exquisite and precocious fourteen, gives birth to an illegitimate daughter. Her
parents, devout Catholics, raise the infant, Maggie, as their own child. At sixteen
Tessa is discovered by Hollywood; by nineteen she's an international movie star.
Maggie lives for her glorious "sister's" infrequent whirlwind visits. Maggie is a
captivating, independent eighteen when she accidentally learns the truth.
Mortally wounded, she breaks all ties with Tessa and starts to work at the famed
Manhattan auction house of Scott & Scott. Five years later, a life-altering crisis
makes Tessa passionately determined to end this estrangement. An auction is
the only way she can find to reach her daughter, an auction of the immensely
valuable collection of famed jewels that represent all the love lavished on her by
her late husband. Tessa promises Scott & Scott the auction on the condition that
Maggie and she work closely together on the sale. For Tessa, her entire future
now hangs on the hope of an almost impossible reconciliation. The Jewels of
Tessa Kent deals with the fascinating workings of an auction house; it's a
revealing look at the inside of Hollywood stardom; but more than anything else,
it's a story of feelings and family, of loss, mistakes, joy and redemption.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Judith Krantz was born on January 9, 1929 in New York City. She graduated
from Wellesley College in 1948. She was a fashion publicist in Paris in the late
1940s. She was the fashion editor for Good Housekeeping magazine, a
contributing writer to McCall's magazine and Ladies' Home Journal, and the
contributing West Coast editor of Cosmopolitan.
Her first novel, Scruples, was published in 1978. Her other novels include
Princess Daisy, Mistral's Daughter, I'll Take Manhattan, Till We Meet Again, The
Jewels of Tessa Kent, and Lovers. Her autobiography, Sex and Shopping: The
Confessions of a Nice Jewish Girl, was published in 2000.

SUMMARY:
Teresa Horvath is the only child of an Irish Catholic mother and a
Hungarian professor father who have almost nothing in common except their
deep faith and their beautiful, talented daughter. At age 14, through a bizarre
sexual encounter, she becomes pregnant and gives birth to a daughter, Maggie,
who Teresa's parents raise as their own. At age 16, she is selected for the role of
Jo in a new movie version of Little Women, embarking on a career that
transforms her into the award-winning international film star Tessa Kent. When
she neglects to claim Maggie as her own child after her parents are killed in a car
crash returning from her Monte Carlo nuptials to one of the world's richest men,
the groundwork is laid for terrible consequences. While Tessa is showered with
jewels by her doting husband, Maggie is raised by a cold, unloving family
financed by her brother-in-law. After receiving a letter on her eighteenth birthday
revealing the fact that her parents were actually her grandparents, and that her
adored but distant sister is her mother, Maggie flees to New York City and enters
the world of high-end auctions. Like her mother, she turns out to be lucky in love,
rich in friendships, and enormously successful. Krantz, the reigning queen of
glitz-and-glamour romance, takes her readers on a compelling and enjoyable
trek through the worlds of precious-jewelry collecting, elegant auction houses,
and the international jet-set scene, imparting tidbits of fascinating information
along the way and presenting a remarkably likable cast of good-hearted
characters.
INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS:
This book is really wonderful and I would recommend this to everyone.
There are many things we can learn from this story. It somewhat talks about
choosing career or personal interests just like what is really happening in the
showbiz industry in our country. Some actress or actors choose to hide their true
life because they want the acceptance and approval of the society. The story
also depicts the relationship between a mother and a child that although Tessa
has sinned against her daughter Maggie, her daughter still forgave her in the
story. In the end, Tessa realized that her true jewels were not the physical wealth
or fame he has but her daughter Maggie.
I chose this book because it is about family and Im really curious about
the title. At first I was really bored because I thought it was a love story again
which has the same plot as the ones shown on television but it wasnt. As I go
deeper in my reading, I was moved to finish it because I want to know how will
Maggie forgive her mother and her reaction in that revelation. I laughed, cried,
became angry while reading this book. I did not like the way it ended though.
When I came to the end of the book it left me wanting to read more nevertheless
I would recommend this book to anyone! It is a must read.
QUOTABLE QUOTES FROM THE STORY:
Well..who knows if this auction is even going to happen
This were the exact words Tessa said when Monte Foy asked her if she
would keep on buying jewels again after her auction. This was a
conversation in the story after Tessa have known that she has a tumor.
This quotation really struck me because it made me think what if Im in
her situation? In situations like this maybe I dont know what to do but I
admire Tessa Kent because she really wants to live her life to the fullest
before her death bed and she stayed being positive which should be the
case in some of the cancer patients in our society.
Yet he believed that hed kept his hideous jealousy from her, a jealousy that
revolted him as if it had been a running sore on his body
This quote also describes what Luke in the story is feeling. When we are
jealous, we tend to be away from our true self and we can do any evil
things and it is not good. Sometimes we can harm other people because
of jealousy but we can control our mind from being jealous like what Luke
in the story did-its just a matter of believing that you can do it.