The Valley of the Dolls, by Jacqueline Susann

The Valley of the Dolls
Jacqueline Susann

Ah, celebrities. They have it SO HARD. They have to look glamorous, make tons of money, and be known all over the world. Thank God for dolls, pills in all shapes and colors. They ease the pain, you know?

Actually, the "dolls" part got old real friggin fast. It was cute for, oh, a second. They are pills, people. Stop calling them dolls for crying out loud. In fact, the writing style in general bothered me. It was quite dated. Geez! Enough already!

Valley of the Dolls, in case you are the other person on the planet who hasn't heard of it, is about three women's rise to fame, and the havoc this fame causes. Can't you feel the pain? It's hard to be beautiful, dammit.

I'm not being entirely fair here. I'm feeling a little bitter right now, so it's easy for me to bash people whose lives seem perfect on the exterior. Of course, I know it's easy to judge. Valley of the Dolls is a good reminder that fame rarely (if ever) equals happiness.

In a nutshell: Susann creates a great plot, but uses a dated, melodramatic writing style that hasn't stood the test of time very well. Nevertheless, Valley of the Dolls is a fun read.

Bibliolatry Scale: 3 out of 6 stars