Most Popular Books by Nathanael West

Nathanael West''s "The Day of the Locust" emerges as a compelling exploration of the disillusionment and despair lurking beneath the glitzy façade of 1930s Hollywood. With a narrative steeped in dark satire, West employs an innovative literary style characterized by vivid imagery and surrealistic elements, reflecting the chaotic ambitions and inner turmoil of his characters. The novel captures the societal malaise of the Great Depression, illustrating the stark juxtaposition between the American Dream and its haunting realities, particularly through the experiences of those who flock to the film industry in search of fame and fortune. Nathanael West, a pivotal figure in American literature, drew from his own experiences in the tumultuous world of early Hollywood while crafting this seminal work. Born to a well-to-do Jewish family in New York City, West faced early setbacks in his career as a playwright and novelist. His keen observations of the entertainment industry''s superficiality and existential crises informed his portrayals of the desperate souls seeking validation in a world increasingly dominated by the disillusioning promise of cinema. For readers interested in the intersection of literature and society, "The Day of the Locust" serves as a timeless allegory of ambition, desperation, and the human condition. West''s incisive critique of American culture offers not only a potent narrative but a mirror reflecting the ongoing struggles with dreams and reality. This novel invites readers to ponder the darker aspects of desire and the cost of relentless aspiration.

Two classic short stories, one about a male reporter who writes an advice column, and the other, about people who have migrated to California in expectation of health and ease.

Considered classics of American literature, Nathaneal West’s Miss Lonelyhearts and The Day of the Locust reveal America at the height of the Great Depression, evoking the disillusionment and despair of that time. Miss Lonelyhearts explores the suffering a young advice columnist working for a New York City newspaper. Locked into a deep depression as the result of his work, Miss Lonelyhearts seeks comfort in drink, in religion, and in the meaningless affair that becomes his downfall. In The Day of the Locust, aspiring artist Tod Hackett falls in love with Faye Greener, a beautiful starlet with big dreams. Through his work as a costume designer and his burgeoning friendship with Faye, Tod is introduced to the world behind the movies, and the varied and unusual characters that populate the fringes of Hollywood. HarperPerennial Classics brings great works of literature to life in digital format, upholding the highest standards in ebook production and celebrating reading in all its forms. Look for more titles in the HarperPerennial Classics collection to build your digital library.

Nathanael West, originally named Nathan Weinstein, (1903 – 1940), was an American writer, primarily known for his satirical novels of the 1930s. His best-known works are "The Day of the Locust" and "Miss Lonelyhearts." Published in 1939, " The Day of the Locust" is a novel about the mythologies of Hollywood and the "American Dream." Enigmatic and disconcerting, this work narrates the experience of a set designer in a semi-hallucinatory and artificial Los Angeles (itself resembling a movie set), inhabited by a parade of eccentric characters and a crowd bewitched by the magic of cinema and promises of abundance and happiness. Both apocalyptic and moving, violent and absurdly comic, " The Day of the Locust" is, in the opinion of many, the best novel ever written about Hollywood.

Welcome to the Essential Novelists book series, were we present to you the best works of remarkable authors. For this book, the literary critic August Nemo has chosen the two most important and meaningful novels of Nathanael West wich are Miss Lonelyhearts and The Day of the Locust. Nathanael West was an American writer best known for satiric novels of the 1930s. West saw the American dream as having been betrayed, both spiritually and materially, and in his writing he presented "a sweeping rejection of political causes, religious faith, artistic redemption and romantic love". This idea of the corrupt American dream endured long after his death, in the form of the term "West''s disease", coined by the poet W. H. Auden to refer to poverty that exists in both a spiritual and economic sense. Novels selected for this book: - Miss Lonelyhearts. - The Day of the Locust.This is one of many books in the series Essential Novelists. If you liked this book, look for the other titles in the series, we are sure you will like some of the authors.

Tod Hackett is a brilliant young artist - and a man in danger of losing his heart. Brought to an LA studio as a set-designer, he is soon caught up in a fantasy world where the cult of celebrity rules. But when he becomes besotted by the beautiful Faye, an aspiring actress and occasional call-girl, his dream rapidly becomes a nightmare. For, with little in the way of looks and no money to buy her time, Tod''s desperate passion can only lead to frustration, disillusionment and rage ...

A great American satirist, Nathanael West laughs in the face of the Horatio Alger myth. Like many an Alger, Lemuel Pitkin leaves his home on the farm to seek his fortune in the Big City. By the time he is through, he has been robbed, jailed, has lost his teeth, his eye, a leg, his scalp, and has witnessed a remarkable number of assults and political riots. In A Cool Million, West etches a classic parable of America in the chaotic Thirties. Penguin Random House Canada is proud to bring you classic works of literature in e-book form, with the highest quality production values. Find more today and rediscover books you never knew you loved.

Nathanael West was only thirty-seven when he died in 1940, but his depictions of the sometimes comic, sometimes horrifying aspects of the American scene rival those of William Faulkner and Flannery O''Connor. A Cool Million, written in 1934, is a satiric Horatio Alger story set in the midst of the Depression. The Dream Life of Balso Snell (1931) was described by one critic as "a fantasy about some rather scatological adventures of the hero in the innards of the Trojan horse."