I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Valley of the Dolls by Jacqueline Susann Published by Virago Modern Classics on June 30, 2016
Genres: Chick-lit, Classic, Fiction
Pages: 417
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher
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Before Jackie Collins, Candace Bushnell and Lena Dunham, Jacqueline Susann held the world rapt with her tales of the private passions of Hollywood starlets, high-powered industrialists and the jet-set.
Valley of the Dolls took the world by storm when it was first published, fifty years ago. Never had a book been so frank about sex, drugs and show business. It is often sited as the bestselling novel of all time.
Dolls - red or black; capsules or tablets; washed down with vodka or swallowed straight. For Anne, Neely and Jennifer, it doesn't matter, as long as the pill bottle is within easy reach. These three beautiful women become best friends when they are young and in New York, struggling to make their names in the entertainment industry. Only when they reach the peak of their careers do they find there's nowhere left to go but down - to the Valley of the Dolls.
Valley of the Dolls turns fifty this year and it is definitely a classic that you want to have on your bookshelf.
Despite being 50 years old, this book is not out-dated. It still fells as fresh, relevant and new to me now as it must have done when it first came out. It’s a gossip column, warning fable about how success can corrupt and Hollywood isn’t always golden. Be careful what you wish for.
Valley of the Dolls is easily better than modern day Girls or Sex in the City. It has a sense of honest and grittiness about the nature of the rich and fabulous. And it certainly does not hide behind the glamour.
It explores sexuality and passion in such a way that there were a couple of scenes that were quite suggestive… Also the use of drugs to control and function in daily life is honest. It is well done and not glorifying, offering a view of how a toxic cocktail of drugs can distort mind and change perspective.
I couldn’t decide whether I was rooting for Anne, Neely and Jennifer or whether I was just distressed by the choices that they kept making in life. But I wanted to keep the three of them in a save place in my heart. And I kept hoping their choices were the right ones…
This is a thought-provoking read and one that will linger in your head long after reading.
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