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The Loved One
The Loved One
Author: Evelyn Waugh
In Hollywood, at Whispering Glades, a full-service funeral home for departed greats, the mononymonous Mr. Joyboy and Aimee Thanatogenos fall in love...with each other and their work. He is chief embalmer, she a crematorium cosmetician. They spend their days contentedly prepping the loved ones for a final appearance. Into this idyllic scene come...  more »
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ISBN-13: 9780316926089
ISBN-10: 0316926086
Publication Date: 9/1999
Pages: 176
Rating:
  • Currently 3.6/5 Stars.
 28

3.6 stars, based on 28 ratings
Publisher: Back Bay Books
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed The Loved One on + 59 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
No wonder this was controversial and became a classic. Very enjoyable.
reviewed The Loved One on + 813 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This novel is slow in several parts but its satire of Hollywood and its mortuary industry is worth the reading effort, considering that it is short (less than 200 pages). Dennis, a poet, works for a pet embalmer, the Happier Hunting Ground. Mr Joyboy works only on people. He is the senior mortician at a rather exclusive mortuary, Whispering Glades, with its own internment grounds; he is rather an artist at transforming disfigured cadavers. Working with him is Aimée, a college trained beautician turned cosmetician for the mortuary. Joyboy and Dennis fall for Aimée. Aimée is infatuated with Mr Joyboy, but he is mama's boy. Enter Denis. She swoons over his (?) poetry, but becomes disillusioned as he is a plagiarist and a liar. Back to Joyboy! Or is it Dennis again? All the while she corresponds with a pseudo-Guru at the local drivel (excuse me, newspaper) for guidance on love. Confused? You won't be after reading this book! (Isn't that a line from the promo for the TV serial Soap?) However, be prepared for a twist at the end. In all, reading this is well worth the effort for the irony of the ending.
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reviewed The Loved One on
A look at Hollywood's way of life and America's way of death.


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