Broken-hearted Henry Halloran, The Comedy Writer moves to L.A, to flip burgers and become a screenwriter. After failing to prevent a girl's suicide, he sells the story to the newspapers. Because unlike most California dreamers, Henry has talent--and he quickly finds an agent. The American Dream seems to be coming true when Colleen, the gawky--and psychotic-- sister of the suicide lands on his doorstep. In a town where little was normal to start with, Henry has to fight to save his sanity, his freedom and his apartment.Farrelly's tale is ripe with insights into the ghoulish hinterland of Hollywood wannabes. But far from over-loading on the shock factor, he has created a tender-hearted hero. Witty and jaded--Henry describes one of his dates as having "skin like luggage"--he inhabits a world of bachelor depravity but neither loses his inner morals or forgets his roots. He fails, in hilarious fashion, to pick up women, he is fixated upon lingerie adverts--but his heart smarts from past wounds and he picks up litter to atone for his sins. If Henry is the obligatory "flawed hero" of the screenwriting text-books, his path to redemption beats most movies hands-down. For anyone who ever harboured an ambition, or has simply tried running away, this book is compulsory. --Matthew Baylis
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