Blonde: A Novel

First, it is very important to remember that this is a work of FICTION, not a biography. But one thing in this fictional work that is NOT fiction is how the mentally ill are viewed and treated. The levels of anxiety and depression the character Norma Jean experiences are as debilitating as any physical illness. But how the actor character C reacts to her during the discussion of the filming of _Some Like It Hot_ is what the mentally ill still face. If the Marilyn character had had cancer, people would have admired how she continued to struggle to work. But because her illness was a mental illness, she was blamed instead of lauded. Things have NOT changed. We must mask our illness as those with other illnesses do not. Our illness is considered a weakness and something we should be held responsible for. We even have to keep our illness a secret because so many films have portrayed the mentally ill as dangerous, and the vast majority of us are not. This novel is an excellent read for many reasons, and while the specific incidents and characterizations are fictional, many of the concepts discussed are NOT fictional and are as true today as they were in the 1950s. Dr. Oates is one of the most respected authors of our time, and this novel helps to demonstrate why.

A long, fascinating, and unrelenting dark trip through a fictionalized take on the rise and demise of Norma Jeane Baker, better known as superstar Marilyn Monroe. Author Joyce Carol Oates paints such an intimate portrait of this woman that it was painful to read at times. "Blonde" (2000) was a finalist for the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize - not surprising, given Oates' epic take on this famous, flawed beauty. This isn't for the weak though; getting inside Marilyn's mind is a frightening experience. Between the drugs, the pressure from the studio, her failed marriages, and her intense insecurity, there really was no chance for survival.I really love this review of the book from Laura Miller in the New York Times: "Joyce Carol Oates takes the boldest path to comprehending 'the riddle, the curse of Monroe' by proceeding directly and frankly to fiction. Her novel Blonde is fat, messy, and fierce. It's part Gothic, part kaleidoscopic novel of ideas, part lurid celebrity potboiler, and is seldom less than engrossing." French actress Jeanne Moreau writes, "Joyce Carol Oates' precise and inspired writing is close to witchcraft. With mastery, she unravels the story of the mythical blonde, the overly adored and despised Marilyn Monroe. Breathlessly, I followed the intricate and passionate emotions surrounding the sweet and complex Norma Jeane, whose blazing aura suffused the whole world and frightened the men who loved her most."And for my favorite "gay" reference in the book, there's this: “Maybe most men preferred other men, or would if they had the option; obviously a man knows what another man wants, and Norma Jeane hadn’t a clue.”

Don't read this as a biography of Marilyn Monroe because that's not what it is. It is a loving, but scathing, interpretation of her lonely life that she lived boldly but recklessly. It is searing, gritty, and emotionally devastating. It is real but also make-believe. Just like Marilyn.If a biography is a recitation of facts and events in a person's life, what Joyce Carol Oates has written in this novel that is loosely based on the life of Norma Jeane Baker/Marilyn Monroe is the complete opposite. It is a raw, blistering story written from the inside out—that is, not so much from facts and events, but rather from Marilyn's heart and soul. It is more about how she felt—an imagining of her inner life—than what she did.It is an intense (very intense!) and passionate psychological study of Marilyn's life and demise. Even the writing style ever so subtly shifts and then dramatically changes as Marilyn begins her descent into madness caused by addiction, depression, and anxiety.The brilliance of this book is that the reader almost becomes Marilyn Monroe, seeing and feeling and hearing and tasting and touching as she did. This remarkable, poetic story will truly haunt you.It's a sensual book, but also a spiritual one. And it's pure literary genius! It's pure Joyce Carol Oates!

A huge book as JCO gives us a fictional re-imagining of Norma Jeane (sic) from her early childhood with a dangerous, mentally-unstable mother, via an orphanage, a foster home and, eventually, Hollywood - via numerous detours.JCO is especially interested in Norma Jeane's inner life and her relationships with men, all driven by her search for her absent father. I know little about Monroe so have no idea what is fact and what fiction but certainly this feels like a convincing portrait of a woman created and constructed as 'Marilyn Monroe'. Certainly the persona made millions for the studios (while Norma Jeane was paid a pittance) but it also served Norma Jeane herself, allowing her, to some extent, to keep her true self hidden - although, eventually, of course, it becomes erased...An intelligent analysis of a modern cultural icon, and a book which gives back attention to the woman behind the Monroe mask.

A wonderful book on MM - I've read a few - this is easily the best - a real tour de force - so imaginative - hooks you from the first page - highly recommended..

Wonderfully written and gives such an endearing image of Marilyn.Fascinating to read about these famous studios and Hollywood life in the fifties, not very commendable to say the least. One problem is that one doesn't always know wether everything is really related to M's life, since JCO writes at the beginning that this isn't a biography, but a novel. But whatever, it's like a biography that the book is read. Looses most of it's interest if it isn't.

this is a strong book about marylin it takes her said story into a fiction book .ok to read but a little far fetched

Just started it but enjoying reading of her early lifr abd childhood