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• Reputation: 449 Q&A: 14 0 1 156 7 0 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Expert: 8 topics Books & Writing Navigating SIFF Comics Week! Genius Awards Week Book Recommendations General Book Discussion Other Books & Writing Book Club- A Visit from the Goon Squad Follow Following 0

  3 0 You know who I love in a very trashy way? Harold Robbins. His books are about pivotal moments, like you describe. The Carpetbaggers is a faux-biography of Howard Hughes. The Dream Merchants is about the birth of Hollywood. And the recent biography about Robbins, The Man Who Invented Sex, is interesting, too. You can find them in virtually any used bookstore or Goodwill. Another bit of trash that I adored was Marlon Brando's novel Fan Tan. (I reviewed it five years ago now) He really could not write, but man is that book something. Paul Constant answered in Books & Writing about 1 year ago | Report 1 comment by Fnarf… 0 0 Harold Robbins is fantastic. Better than Sidney Sheldon, I would say, though maybe not QUITE as trashy. I'll have to check that Brando novel. Fnarf commented about 1 year ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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  3 0 If you like trash, you simply cannot do better than the immortal Jackie Collins (sister of Joan, who also wrote a couple of Hollywood trash novels). Jackie's books are not literature, but they're FANTASTIC FUN. I'm not sure about the cultural pivot points; maybe you can give her credit for anticipating the world of Paris, Britney, and Lindsay. I would start with "Hollywood Wives" and go from there -- I've read every one of them, and they're all great. Plus you'll get hilarious, disapproving stares from your hipster friends and old ladies on the bus. Fnarf answered in Books & Writing about 1 year ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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  1 0 Peyton Place by Grace Metalious is a fave trash read of mine. I don't know about its value presenting cultural transitions, but it's a Bildungsroman. How about _The Magnificent Ambersons_ by Booth Tarkington? Christina L answered in Books & Writing about 1 year ago | Report 2 comments by Ed B and Christina L… 0 0 Does The Magnificent Ambersons really qualify as trash? Ed B commented about 1 year ago | Report 0 0 Ed B: The questioner, in her own words, asked for "suggestions for novels like this that capture pivotal points in culture, with an engaging story line?" Ambersons has a socioeconomic/cultural shift and I thought it would work as capturing pivotal points with an engaging story line. Christina L commented about 1 year ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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  1 0 I was going to suggest "Once is Not Enough", also by Jackie Sussane.... However, I've never read it. My college roommate had three paperback copies setting on his bookshelf, next to one another as a visual joke. You'd find yourself asking "Why do you have three copies of "Once is Not enough..." before you'd catch yourself and get the joke. O my captain answered in Books & Writing about 1 year ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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  1 0 The Group by Mary McCarthy is somewhat trashy, and also captures a time period - the 30s and 40s. It follows a group of Vasser graduates as they marry and have children or pursue careers. The depiction of their lives rings true - McCarthy (a Seattle native) herself graduated from Vasser in the 30s. Luckier answered in Books & Writing about 1 year ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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