No comments about Another Country Not My Own.

No comments about Another City, Not My Own.

No comments about A Season in Purgatory.

No comments about Inconvenient Woman, An.

5 comments about A Season in Purgatory.

1. This was the second time that I read this book and I will read it again. The story was never dull and was very difficult to put down. Between readings, I did lend it to a friend who absolutely hated it and had a hard time getting through it. She said it reminded her too much of a prominent Massachusetts family. I had just thought it was an exceptionally good fiction novel. Upon the second reading, I also saw the similarities to the family but still enjoyed the book and believe the author got his point across.



2. I am only half-way completed with this book and it is absolutely incredible! It is of the sort that is so hard to put down! In that it is based on the Moxley murder, it is written prior to the trial of Michael Skakel, so it does go with the assumption of Tommy Skakel being the murderer. Both boys had been suspected of the murder. All the names have been changed, of course, as well as the addition of characters/deletion of others. You will not be disappointed in reading this book.



3. This is a fascinating read, a barely disguised ( or not at all) expose of one of the most notorious families of American political history. When Harrison, a teenaged boy is orphaned by the murder of his parents, he is scooped up under the wing of the family of his classmate, Constant, at boarding school. His excellence at writing makes him a useful friend to Constant, whose family has great expectations for him in a political future. When he witnesses some of Constant's worst excesses, he is bribed to silence by having his schooling financed by the head of the family. Being very young and inexperienced, he goes along with his position until he is grown and realizes that he will be forever in their thrall. It's not until twenty years later, when the murder committed by Constant becomes public, that he accuses the family of covering up the crime in which he was made an accessory, and he unburdens himself of the guilt he has carried for all of these years. The whole book is an indictment of the power of money and position, in smoothing over the less savoury parts of people's lives and characters and how these same people can learn to justify their actions and to blame everyone else for their own faults and weaknesses.



4. "A Season In Purgatory" is not simply a fictionalized account of the Martha Moxley murder, nor is it just a trashing (or recounting, depending on your view) of the Kennedy family. While it uses both of these to full advantage, the result is more than that.
   
   Dunne shines a light on the American desire for their heroes to come with a narrative that matches the national mythology - rags to riches, religious, family centered, generous, philanthropic, handsome or beautiful, and above all, successful. The fictitious Bradleys, who will stop at nothing to perfect this image and grab the power and money that is the reward for reaching the pinnacle of the American dream, leave a trail of destroyed lives in their wake. That Dunne has been able to write an interesting novel that also raises deep issues about "American values" is what makes "A Season in Purgatory" a great read.
   
   By merging three generations of Kennedys as well as tossing in the Skakel family (Ethel Kennedy's family, one member of which was convicted recently in the murder this book was inspired by), we get a sort of Frankenstein's Monster - a creation that is so corrupt and so ultimately destructive that it is a tragedy both for iteself all all it comes in contact with. I also appreciated the details Dunne included - such as the family patriarch hiring a ghostwriter for his son's book and also buying up large numbers of the same book to ensure a bestseller, actions that have been attributed to Joseph Kennedy, for example. These, and other details, force us to realize that there really is always a "man behind the curtain". Dunne is famous for his hatred of the manipulation of the justice system by the privileged, and this book clearly shows how the blame for this lies not only in the willingness of the wealthy and famous to lie and cheat and buy "justice" , but of the public's willingness to let them get away with it in order to keep our heroes on their pedestals. A good job by Dunne, who can sometimes come across as pretty smug but mostly avoids that in this book.



5. If you enjoy suspense or have enjoyed the author's television series, I would highly recommend this read. The first few pages were slightly complex. Beyond that, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

5 comments about People Like Us.

1. I loved this book- there are many, many characters and yet the book flows smoothly and is entertaining and satisfying from beginning to end. I've read this book three times in the last ten years and each time, I feel like I'm revisiting old friends.



2. This book is a gossipy, fascinating, fictional look at the wealthy and their values. Of course, it's all about money and power, and the old guard having to put up with social interaction with the nouveau riche whose social skills have not quite caught up with their financial well-being. Central to the plot are Elias and Ruby Renthal whose somewhat shady backgrounds at first scandalize the established social gentry, but who eventually become social scions by virtue of their lavish parties and improved manners. Woven among the phony, materialistic values are a few characters who show refreshingly genuine emotions of love and selflessness. This is an interesting study of a group of people who indeed have more money than sense.



3. I always enjoy Domenick Dunne. I had heard of this book as it is an older one but had never gotten around to reading it before. I was not disappointed!! Always a surprise twist. Dunne is a fascinating writer.



4. No one has commented so far on the actual writing in this book--it's frequently awful and very inconsistent. Convoluted tortured sentences full of clumsy clauses. Certain sentences I had to re-read several times even to understand who the pronouns referred to. I even saw spelling mistakes.
   
   Yet, at other points, Dunne writes beautifully. Did anyone edit this book?
   
   The story is a virtual retread of The Two Mrs. Grenvilles, but definitely fun in a cheesy way...and the way the book evokes the later 80s is, perhaps, its strongest recommendation. Enjoyed it, but wish it had been properly edited.



5. This is a great companion book to The Bonfire of the Vanities. I have been a longtime fan of Dunne's writing for Vanity Fair, but this was the first piece of fiction by him that I have read, and I wasn't disappointed. This book is fun, gossipy, and a real page-turner. Is it important literature? No. But who cares? If you like books about High Society or the New York social scene, this one's for you.

No comments about Another City, not my Own [Unabridged] [Audiobook].

5 comments about The Two Mrs. Grenvilles.

1. If you're looking for a great vacation beach book or just something to curl up with for an afternoon, this is it. Great escapism.. . I really enjoyed this tale. I felt like I was a snoopy neighbor looking in the windows at someone else's troubles.



2. I am always reading a book on the subway. Most recently, that book was "The Two Mrs. Grenvilles." Bad choice. Twice I got so caught up in the detail of the lives of the Grenvilles that I read on past my stop. That has never happened before, and hopefully never again. Reading about the high society lives, the passion, the intrigue, the snobbishness of the society-registered upper crust is indeed a guilty pleasure, and a great pleasure as well. This novel, supposedly based on the true-life murder of William Woodward by his wife, presents the older Mrs. Grenville (mother-in-law): born well, married well, lived well. And it presents the younger Mrs. Grenville (daughter-in-law): born dirt poor in Pittsburgh, Kansas (yes Kansas), deserted by her father as a young girl, brought up by her mother and her various men of the moment, then turning to the glamorous life of a showgirl as she danced in a line behind Ethel Merman. But Ann Arden did marry well, William Grenville, Jr., don't you know, and she lived very well, to a point. To a point that her trashy, ill-tempered, paranoid roots took over and "Annie got her gun." Told by Billy Plant, one of the author's alter egos, this is classic Dominick Dunne without the incessant name-dropping, but with the terrific attention to detail he has brought to most of his writing. I found this book thoroughly enjoyable



3. I bought this book as something light to read on the airplane. And I didn't realize that the story was based on fact until I read these reviews later. But that should not matter - the book is presented as a fictional novel and should be judged as such.
   
   The story, such as it is, is simple - a beautiful showgirl from Kansas falls in love with the scion from one of the richest, old money families in NY. The family, especially the always-proper mother, is aghast, but they are in love and elope and marry anyway.
   
   However, as time goes on, they each realize the other is a vapid, malicious, lying cheat and the marriage disintegrates until the wife finally kills the husband in a supposed accident.
   
   There could have been an interesting, tingly, evil, fun story here, but there wasn't. None of the characters are sympathetic, or even interesting.
   
   The technique of telling the story from the point of view of a third character, a novelist, adds nothing, and leads to horrible repetition. First we hear part of the story at the beginning, then we learn the story in flashback, then we hear the story again, parts of it word-for-word, as the novelist convinces the wife to tell him the secret truth of what happened, which we, the readers, have already been told. This could have worked well had we learned something different each time, found out some secrets that puts everything in a different light, but instead we get nothing new or interesting.
   
   The first 100 or so pages are actually fairly well written and quite engaging. But the book slowly falls apart after that, to the point that the last 50 pages are unreadably awful.
   
   If you want a fun book about the rich, adulterous, horse-breeding set, read Jane Smiley's Horse Heaven instead.



4. When a scion of an East coast banking family is shot by his starlett wife, the family purses its lips. Dominick Dunne masterly describes how two worlds passionately met and clashed. Truman Capote's unfinished novel 'Answered Prayers' was inspired by the same real life events. Compassionate, intriguing, and, yes, scandalous.



5. "The Mrs. Grenvilles" is a mixture of the true-life events of the wealthy Woodward family, the acid of Truman Capote's "Answered Prayers" (which also had a section based on the Woodwards), and a few original ideas of the author's, Dominick Dunne. Dunne is not shy about "borrowing" names and events from Capote; in fact most alterations are so slight it seems hardly worth the bother. The names and events are also closely tied to their real-life counterparts; so close that the fictional elements, which often paint a very unflattering portrait of the central characters, do a horrible disservice to those involved. Many readers will assume that what Dunne has written is the gospel truth. In a nutshell, the story is about Ann Arden, born Ursula Mertens. Ann will do almost anything to rise above her Kansas farm upbringing. Finding modest success as a showgirl and actress, she scores the big time by landing William Grenville Jr., heir to one of the wealthiest families in New York. Although "Junior" falls for her, his snobbish family does not. After the central climax of the novel (no plot spoiler here!), The Woodwards protect Ann at all costs, rather than risk the dirty laundry of their son's life being aired. It is a truly fascinating commentary on the morals and lifestyles of the rich and famous, with an ending that is also very heartbreaking as Ann realizes all her work to climb up the social ladder has left her very lonely. The novel is written through the eyes of Basil Plant, a gay writer & extra for society dinners who wants to exact revenge on Ann for making fun of his sexual persuasion; it is his revenge that becomes the final straw for the exhausted Ann Arden at the end of the novel. Plant is obviously Truman Capote, whose unfinished novel "Answered Prayers" caused him expulsion from society (for telling all their behind-closed-doors tales) and was the final embarrassment for the real-life Ann Woodward.
   
   Well written with fascinating characters and events, this book is a fun and breezy read; those who have seen the TV-Movie with Ann-Margret will note that the characters in Dunne's book are less sympathetic, and the rollercoaster temperament of Ann Arden has also been somewhat neutered. I enjoyed both book and movie, but they should not be compared to each other.

5 comments about An Inconvenient Woman.

1. Could NOT put this book down. But the ending! Not as I expected or hoped. Left me feeling empty....but I guess that is what happens in the real world.



2. Picked this book up years ago & read it through despite the dreary plot trajectory & increasing contempt inspired by the principal characters. Hard to believe a fella with beaucoup bucks would settle for such a pointless, boring existence or that a gal who consents to be a wealthy man's mistress could be so clueless.
   
   As depicted by the author, the title character is both naive and presumptuous; too deep in denial about the profession she's chosen to take steps to ensure her future security or to gracefully accept the attentions of a willing successor to the deceased patron, and too enamored of her self-justifying fantasy to understand that appropriating the air of a bereaved widow will elicit little sympathy and still less respect.
   
   In her defense, she's young & her elderly Sugar Daddy is accomplished in exploiting the vulnerabilities of others. With consummate calculation, he keeps her on a short leash in relative social isolation, making it difficult for her to assess the true nature of her situation & its likely outcome.
   
   The story's common enough - even without great wealth, sufficiently unprincipled older persons too often dupe and use needy youngsters. Regardless of where you live, in the course of a year your local paper will likely report the outcome of at least one such arrangement.
   
   This book left me with no desire to sample more of the author's work. If fictionalized treatment of actual events is his forte, surely a more compelling and rewarding set of characters and circumstances could have been chosen.



3. I've read 3 of Dominick Dunn's books and all of them have not disappointed me. I am a late comer to his work, and I'm glad that I found these books on Amazon for great prices. His books keep you turning the pages and the biggest disappointment is when the book ends.
   
   Flo March in this book is a true survivor. You want her to get what she is promised by Jules and the twist and turns that the book goes thru keeps you turning the pages. I would reccommend this book for anyone who enjoys the peeping thru the keyhole kind of book.



4. I LOVE DOMINICK DUNNE'S STORIES AND THIS ONE HAS BEEN MY FAVORITE FOR YEARS. I BOUGHT THIS BOOK FOR MY SISTER (WHO WAS NOT A D.D. FAN) BUT FOUND SHE LOVED THE PACE OF HIS WRITING, ETC.



5. What happens when a woman becomes "inconvenient"? Flo March is about to find out.
   
   Her wealthy married lover has provided her with many of the material things in life---clothes, jewelry, a home---and has promised to always take care of her. When he becomes ill, however, and the end seems near, he even arranges to buy the home for her and provide a monthly allowance...
   
   So what happens to this dream? Suddenly her world is topsy-turvy. She is persona non grata everywhere she goes. And frightening things are happening...Could it be that the secrets she knows and the inconvenience of her continued presence herald unseen and unknown tragedies?
   
   An Inconvenient Woman paints a cautionary tale of the downside to being a mistress.
   
   I really enjoyed this book, as I enjoy most of Dunne's creations. This one was also made into a movie for TV and I watch it whenever I'm feeling in the mood for a peek into the seamier side of life.

5 comments about Another City, Not My Own: A Novel in the Form of a Memoir.

1. 
   Snide, judgemental, gossipy Dominick Dunne has outdone himself in this highly personalized, rather catty account of his experiences covering the infamous OJ trial. This is a romp of a book, littered with famous names, spicy anecdotes, and genuine insight into the workings of the media circus. Very enjoyable, often humorous trip down memory lane from a unique perspective. The impact of the Simpson trial will continue to reverberate in American legal and sociological circles.



2. In this autobiographical novel, Dominick Dunne relates his experiences covering the O.J. Simpson trial for "Vanity Fair" magazine and as a guest analyst on many top TV programs, from Larry King to Dan Rather's CBS News broadcast. Dunne is unquestionably the reporter Gus Bailey in this story, and we follow his experiences in the high and low society world he inhabits. Told in the third person, much of what the narrator, through Gus, tells us is like fodder for the notorious "Page Six" column in the New York Post. He/Gus drops names like roses drop petals after the first frost. It is fascinating to see him/Gus weave his life around superstars and super rich: Elizabeth Taylor, Nancy Reagan, the Bloomingdales, Lady Di, the list goes on and on. In most cases, Dunne uses real names and places; sometimes he uses pseudonyms (he claims to protect himself from lawsuits). Sometimes he gives both, as he tells us the phony names he used in a past book and the real names now of the individuals involved. It's interesting to contemplate why he chooses real or phony to identify the people he/Gus relates with. Dominick, like his alter-ego Gus, was a Hollywood producer who left town a failure, but through his writing again achieved favor among the shakers and movers of Tinseltown. Throughout this novel, Gus tells us of incidents that will make fascinating scenes in a book and probable mini-series that will follow. Interesting that he would use the term "scene" from his previous Hollywood life. (In my experience, writers generally use the term "episode" in such circumstances.) Dunne became an expert on the Simpson case, and used that expertise to get himself invited to fabulous homes and parties world-wide. In addition to these social maneuverings, Dunne tells us all about the O.J. case, the murders, the trial, the behind-the-scene machinations. He/Gus firmly believes that O.J. was guilty and he/Gus also believes that the trial will end in a hung jury. When the not-guilty verdict was delivered, I felt his shock although I, of course, knew the outcome. But, nothing prepared me for the shocking last pages of this book. Well, Dunne does clearly foretell the ending in the first two pages, but by the time it actually happens, I had forgotten that aspect through my fascination with all that went on in between. This is a masterfully presented and well-crafted book.



3. i read this book several years ago and i've passed it on to every OJ junkie i know. its BEYOND spectacular. Dominick Dunne is a master at creating a riveting page-turner with a wicked jaw dropping sense of self depricating humor.
   ive since read this book 3 more times.



4. Although the OJ story supposedly ended years ago, this book is still timely. It is a real insider view of the drama of the trial. One of incidents is a party that he intended with Marcia Clark. He explores the other characters in this drama and though justice has still not been done, this book might just explain what it has not happened yet. Again his experience of the loss of daughter brings poignancy to the book and helps him treat the victims with the respect that they deserve.



5. No one will ever accuse Dominick Dunne of being a brilliant writer, nor is it likely he ever will win a Pulitzer Prize for his work. "Another City, Not My Own" highlights all his faults as a story teller, yet proves to be compellingly readable trash.
   
   For starters, I take exception to the book's subtitle, "A Novel in the Form of a Memoir." A memoir, by its very definition, requires the narrator to speak in the first person. As this is a third-person narrative inspired by Dunne's experiences while covering the infamous O.J. Simpson trial for "Vanity Fair," and its protagonist is the fictional Gus Bailey (a barely disguised version of the author), it rightly should be described as "A Memoir in the Form of a Novel."
   
   The tale overflows with juicy behind-the-scenes tidbits related to the court proceedings and gossip about the lives of Hollywood's rich and famous, but it's told in a very sloppy fashion, and apparently without the firm hand of an editor to whip it into shape. Dunne maddeningly repeats himself numerous times throughout the book (a bad habit he has displayed in previous works, as well), as if his readers are incapable of retaining a piece of information the first time he reveals it. As a result, characters are identified multiple times, and details are tossed at us more than once. After a while, it becomes very tiresome.
   
   Dunne clearly revels in his celebrity and is thrilled to hobnob with both the great and the fallen, and you can't help but catch some of his enthusiasm as you work your way toward what ultimately is a preposterous finale. Even a trash novel shouldn't leave us with an ending as unbelievable as this one.
   
   Approach this book with caution, and you won't be disappointed. It's an easy read, and you'll laugh out loud at some of the celebrity foibles and courtroom shenanigans Dunne reveals. It's a bumpy ride but a fun journey, although you'll probably want to shower off the dirt and then redeem yourself by reading a classic when you reach the end.