Description
Narrated by Hazel "Hazie" Coogan, a devoted maid and lifelong caretaker to fading Hollywood icon Katherine Kenton, this darkly comedic novel peels back the glamorous veneer of Golden Age cinema to reveal the desperate reality beneath. When a charming new suitor, Webster Carlton Westward III, enters Miss Kenton's life, Hazie perceives him as a threat to her position of influence and orchestrates a campaign to turn her employer against him, convinced he's only after a lucrative tell-all biography. Written in a screenplay-like style that mirrors the theatrical nature of its subject matter, Palahniuk exposes the hollow underbelly of fame—the eating disorders, cosmetic surgeries, and chemical dependencies that sustain the illusion of eternal youth and beauty. A sharp, unflinching examination of obsession, loyalty, and the price of stardom, Tell-All is both a love letter to and a scathing critique of Hollywood's golden era.
Available Editions
paperback
Vintage Books
Published Jun 1, 2011
192 pages
ISBN: 9780099526988
Reviews
2 ratings
Community Reviews(1)
When Webster Carlton Westward III arrives on the scene to seduce Katherine Kenton, Hazie Coogan - Katherine's maid and our narrator - is suspicious of his ulterior motives. When Hazie finds Webster's written memoir of his life, she discovers a series of sinister alternative endings in which Katherine dies. Presuming Webster means to kill off Katherine to cash in on her story, Hazie has to find a way to stop him. <i>A lot</i> of name dropping and obscenities are dropped in this this ode to old Hollywood and the story itself fails to hold up to Palahniuk's previous work. The plot, although potentially intriguing, is weak; <i><a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Tell-All-Chuck-Palahniuk/9780099526988/?a_aid=theprivategirl" target="new">Tell All</a></i> falls short and fails to deliver, leaving the reader apathetic.
Details
First Published
2010
Language
eng
Content Warnings
Content and trigger warnings for Tell-All by Chuck Palahniuk.