Caviar Dreams, Tuna Fish Budget: How to Survive in Business and Life

Summary

Pretty Mess meets #Girlboss in this part memoir, part entrepreneurial manifesto from The Real Housewives of New Jersey star Margaret Josephs as she chronicles her rise from chaos to confidence, business success, and reality TV fame.

Known to fans as “The Marge,” Margaret Josephs is outspoken, stylish, and unapologetically herself. On screen, she’s a fan-favorite Housewife, successful businesswoman, and lifestyle maven. Off screen, her journey to success was anything but glamorous. Born to young immigrant parents and raised by a single, free-spirited mother after escaping an abusive home, Margaret grew up without structure, stability, or a roadmap for the future.

Through destructive relationships, career setbacks, and personal reinvention, Margaret learned to survive—and then thrive—by sheer grit. In this revealing book, she shares how she turned adversity into ambition, building a lifestyle brand, navigating business with family, and carving out space as an uncompromising woman in a male-dominated world.

Along the way, Margaret spills unforgettable stories from her personal life, including the son viewers never knew about, life-changing advice from Joan Rivers, a notorious rock-star rendezvous, and the affair that ended her marriage but ultimately led to happiness on her own terms. Written with humor, honesty, and signature bravado, this memoir is both a behind-the-scenes look at reality TV fame and a rallying cry for women who want more.