Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: The Illuminating Diary of a Professional Lady (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics) [Paperback]

Anita Loos (Author)

Book Description

Series: Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics | Publication Date: July 1, 1994

This novel satirizes a pair of sirens of the jazz age, as an example of comic American vernacular writing of this era.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes brings back the durable Lorelei Lee, the 'Little Girl From Little Rock,' whose successful career as a paid companion to gents-usually married-('Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend') has fueled several successful stage musicals and movies...Lorelei tours the world, going from man to man in a lighthearted spoof of 'traditional family values.' -- The Arizona Daily Star, August 1998

It is not often that a great book makes a great movie, but this is the case here: Both are superb....I see from the book's cover that Edith Wharton called Loos's book "the great American novel." that goes a little too far, but I see what she--she, in particular--means. A girl like I thinks it makes an ideal valentine. -- Boston Sunday Globe, Katherine A. Powers, 14 February 1999

It's a pleasure to report that Anita Loos's "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" is once more in print....The sect to Loos's novel is that it's narrated by Lorelei, a beautiful smart/dumb woman who as at once calculating, strong-willed, and ignorant about anything except her remarkable expertise at Subject A....Lorelei is a calculating monster; [but] she's charming and funny. You might say she gives good value....You won't be sorry. -- Palm Beach Post, Scott Eyman, 15 November 1998

The great American novel. -- Edith Wharton --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Born in California in 1893, Anita Loos was herself a celebrity of the Jazz Age that produced Lorelei Lee. She began writing movie scripts by the time she was twelve, and before her death in 1981 she had written an enormous number of stories, screenplays, and more. She was also the author of an autobiography, A Girl Like I. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (July 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140184872
• ISBN-13: 978-0140184877
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,787,653 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Blondes DO have more fun, August 14, 2004

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Paperback)

You could say that author/screenwriter Anita Loos invented the chick-lit genre. Her entertainingly fluffy satire "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" certainly fits the bill, with its love-seeking heroine and amusing jokes. It never dips far below the surface, but its lightness is part of its appeal.

"A gentleman friend and I were dining at the Ritz last evening and he said that if I took a pencil and a paper and put down all of my thoughts it would make a book." Meet Lorelei Lee, a pretty blonde socialite with a love of jewels, men, and luxury. She has a married boyfriend, but is convinced to go abroad so her name won't be "smirched."

So Lorelei and her pal Dorothy head off to Europe, bumping into exalted people (like "Dr. Froyd") and winning the hearts of wealthy men, in between days-long parties. Gold-digging, millionaires, money and love all get wrapped up in the tangle of Lorelei's everyday life...

Lorelei first appeared in Harper's Bazaar, and a short story stretched out into a full-length novel that appeared in serials. A first edition sold out almost instantly. Now Lorelei has countless descendents -- sure, those determined gals have been updated for the twenty-first century, with jobs and Web access. But light women's fiction could be seen to stem from Loos's novel.

A satirical edge runs through "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," poking fun at the jazzy gals whom Loos had to deal with regularly. Loos doesn't spare anything -- the book is riddled with intentional typos, like "encyclopediacs," "safires" and "maskerades" (yet she can spell "champagne"). The shallowness of the flappers is best shown in straight-faced jokes about the latest Parisian styles of buttons. Loos's satire doesn't bite down to the bone, but it does scratch lightly in a deliciously catty way.

Lorelei has an entertaining mix of determination, idiocy, and a constant belief in her own towering intellect. She's so much fun it's hard not to like her, in spite of the fact that she's an utter airhead. She talks matter-of-factly about how she has "almost one of everything" (diamond-wise), and tries to reform the entire world (without success, needless to say).

Gentlemen may prefer blondes, and people seeking a fun light read may prefer "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes." If you are in the mood for vintage chick-lit, Loos's witty little novel is a fun diversion.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious, December 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Paperback)

Anita Loos's "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" is a comic masterpiece. Loos tells the story of Lorelei Lee, a blond, money-seeker, opportunist girl on a trip through Europe. From Now York to London, to Paries and all the way through Vienna Lorelei meets lots of gentlemen, charms them, gets money and jewels from them and then light-heartedly leaves them with a short note in which she promises she will meet them somewhere else, perhaps. A real strumpet, Lorelei Lee emerges as a delicius crature from Loos genial prose, and by the end of the book, we have learned to love her.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Light-hearted and wonderful, May 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Paperback)

What a fun, funny little book. Lorelei's thoughts and interpretations of her life as she effortlessly moves from one gentleman to another are very amusing. There is never a dull moment as she sweeps across America and Europe, leaving a trail of used up gentlemen behind her. Fascinating and wickedly funny. I'm very glad I read this. (And I can't wait to see the movie with Marilyn Monroe.)