From the minute I heard about Lori Culwell's novel Hollywood Car Wash I couldn't wait to read it (I admit it even jumped my massive queue of books to be reviewed). I'm celebrity-obsessed (yes, I know it's shallow, but I don't care) and Culwell's book, about an actress who is systematically turned into a "starlet," is based on true events.
Amy Spencer is a college student in Michigan with ambitions to be an actress in independent films, but when she gets the part of a regular girl from Michigan in a TV pilot she puts her ideals on hold and heads for Hollywood. The part is good, the money even better (particularly since Amy's family have been struggling since her father's death), but soon the show becomes incredibly popular and Amy's under increasing pressure to change, well, everything. Her name (to Star), her hair, her teeth, her nose and, of course, her body.
I didn't want to put this book down and I wouldn't have done if I hadn't had other responsibilities (I kept thinking what a perfect book it would be for the beach... if I didn't have a 3-year-old). It's entertaining, shocking and completely compelling. Because Star - sorry, Amy - is ordinary at the start of the book, she's easy to identify with, and though I found her a little weak at times, I really felt for her (I even cried a couple of times).
The back cover blurb includes the line: "...this shockingly accurate novel about the ins and outs of the Hollywood gave will leave the reader wondering - who is Star?" I don't know who she is (and she's not who I thought she was - the "megastar boyfriend with a big secret" was a red herring!), but I am desperate to know.
Despite the fact that I've read plenty of celebrity magazines and biographies and watched the odd E! True Hollywood Story or ten, there was still plenty in this book to shock me (unless I'm just gormlessly naive) and it made me appreciate just what a truly awful place Hollywood must be! Plus it's interesting from a feminist point of view - showing just how much work goes into making actresses "picture perfect" these days.
Rating: 5/5
Like this? Try How To Sleep With a Movie Star by Kristin Harmel
