This past fall semester at school, my class was looking into literature that took place in the 1920s. One of the books we came across was Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
Unlike some of the other books that I have reviewed on this blog, this book was made into a movie. Yep, the book was published in 1925, and then, in 1953, made it into a movie starring Marilyn Monroe. So what's it about?
Wait until you hear this: this is a story that's in the point of view of a self-admitted gold-digger woman named Lorelei. In her story, she describes her times of doing men wrong whenever she gets into relationships with them, only for her to have them spend money or give things to her. She keeps taking advantage of people throughout the entire story until she finally finds her place in life.
-No spoilers, I guess.
Now that you have a premise, what do I think? Well, it's not bad; I just hate its morals.
I really hate gold-digger people. I think they're selfish, and they don't care about anyone but themselves. And when I learned that this book was supposed to be humorous, I was shocked. I mean, who would want to laugh at a person taking advantage of another person, especially when it comes to their money?
-It's like saying: "Ha! Ha! She made that guy spend money on her! And the funniest is... she leaves him to pursue more wealthy men! Who cares, right? Ha! Ha!" It just won't seem right.
Another problem I had with this book is that the main character Lorelei doesn't learn much of anything. What does she learn at the end?
-(pause) Okay, only one spoiler...
When she gets married (not saying who), she's still taking advantage of people. You'd think she would give up her feeding-on-people ways as soon as she settles down with a man. But no, she continues to make him her "money" slave.
-It's also like skipping the "What Have We Learned Today..." segment in Veggietales completely. (Oh wait! They already did that in that Netflix series Veggietales In The House!)
However, if there's one thing I liked about this book was its consistency. The main character's narration (in diary entries) is witty and smart-ass-like.
-I guess that's where the comedy comes from? (I had to read the book more than once to get that.)
Plus, I can understand where Lorelei is coming from. I mean, the story was set in the 1920s, a time when materialism was the highlight of the period. People buying, spending, and partying like crazy... and among the chaos are women coming out in flashy apparel and bobbed hair to look and impress, especially seduce. And that's the thing about gold-diggers: they seduce.
Overall, the book was an easy-read, but don't expect anything rewarding at the end.
-Only the main character gets rewarded (Another spoiler, I think...).
Whatsoever Critic
Source: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
Courtesy: Anita Loos/Boni and Liveright
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