false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1223640385m/229585.jpg 229585 5 <div><i>A Cool Million </i>(1934) subtitled "The Dismantling of Lemuel Pitkin", is a satiric Horatio Alger story set in the midst of the Depression and is written in a bracing, mock-heroic style that has lost none of its wit or power. <i>The Dream Life of Balso Snell</i> (1931), West's first work, was described by one delighted critic as "a fantasy about some rather scatalogical adventures of the hero in the innards of the Trojan Horse."<br></div> 133601 1931 A Cool Million & The Dream Life of Balso Snell total:145|5:39|4:50|3:45|2:9|1:2| 145 550 200 19 4 4 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 06 09:46:00 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 06 10:03:36 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1972 Fri Mar 07 05:08:50 -0800 2008 Fri Mar 07 05:21:01 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Aug 17 21:08:04 -0700 2008 Sun Aug 17 14:48:01 -0700 2008 Sun Aug 17 21:08:04 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue Jul 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 05 07:55:51 -0800 2009 Tue Jul 28 09:19:22 -0700 2009 1 more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Sep 10 18:57:41 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 18:57:41 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Tue Sep 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 08 09:52:32 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 08 13:56:43 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Fri May 02 08:14:54 -0700 2008 Fri May 02 08:14:54 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Fri Nov 14 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Aug 13 18:43:37 -0700 2008 Fri Nov 14 13:23:28 -0800 2008
Read Dream Life over the course of a couple drunken train rides back from the city, and maybe it's not such a great book to read when you're not sober. Intentionally, kind of over-the-top bizarre in a way that isn't so satisfying, as I...more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri May 25 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Mar 18 11:25:26 -0700 2008 Mon Mar 16 09:35:21 -0700 2009 1 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Jan 20 17:57:27 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 20 18:00:31 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Sat Sep 13 15:57:37 -0700 2008 Mon Oct 13 13:40:36 -0700 2008 .5 You can definately tell that "Dream Life" is one of West's earlier works because there is this sense of incompleteness about the whole novel. But it's a delightfully weird and fun r...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Aug 23 13:52:18 -0700 2008 Tue Aug 26 17:19:53 -0700 2008 Cool Million was also really enjoyable but not quite as hilarious.
Both are heavily satirical and ironic. West is (as always) a brilliant writer]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jun 17 14:35:02 -0700 2008 Tue Jun 17 14:36:02 -0700 2008
Worth reading, but go to Miss Lonelyhearts and Day of the Locust first.]]> 2 0 false false Tue Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jun 23 13:34:31 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 01 20:22:28 -0700 2008
I'm amazed that this is the same man who wrote Miss Lonelyhearts and The Day of the Locust.]]> 3 0 false false Sat Oct 25 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Oct 21 06:38:50 -0700 2008 Mon Nov 03 10:19:10 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Mon Mar 17 11:50:11 -0700 2008 Mon Mar 17 12:28:34 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Sat Dec 27 19:19:23 -0800 2008 Fri Oct 31 07:55:31 -0700 2008 Sat Dec 27 19:19:23 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Nov 16 10:45:55 -0800 2007 Fri Nov 16 10:47:46 -0800 2007 0 0 false false Wed Mar 12 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Mar 07 14:16:57 -0800 2008 Fri Mar 07 14:16:57 -0800 2008 2 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Nov 24 08:19:23 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 24 08:23:30 -0800 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=229585