A review by stephen_coulon
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos

challenging funny lighthearted reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

The world’s introduction to feminist heroine Lorelai Lee, a parvenu from Little Rock who turned society’s constraints on women to her mercenary advantage. It’s easy to fall in love with Lorelai’s charm and hilarious antics, but the real satire lies in Loos’s cataloging all the different species of clueless and creepy men in society. Most people are familiar with the film adaptation from 1953 starring Marilyn Monroe, but the novel is far more sardonic and progressive in approach. It’s not only aggressively feminist (though like all great satire, in subtext), but it’s also LGBT friendly, in coding at least. If you read carefully you may even find a couple of gay characters, an unusual encounter in a 1920s book. My 1963 Curtis Books edition includes the original illustrations from trendsetting moderne artist Ralph Barton, which are the absolute cutest. It’s easy to see why the greatest authors of the time, Wharton, Joyce, Fitzgerald, Santayana, Faulkner, Huxley, all loved and praised this book.