Ask the Dust by John Fante is the 1939 novel that inspired Bukowski. Naturally, Hajar thought she’d hate it and Curtis knew he’d love it before turning the first page.
The short semi-autobiographical novel is one of the books in the ‘Bandini Quartet’ series and follows young writer Arturo Bandini as he tries to make it in Great Depression-era LA.
Listen to find out what we thought about the book that’s been dubbed ‘the great Los Angeles novel’,
Publisher’s Blurb
Arturo Bandini arrives in Los Angeles with big dreams. But the reality he finds is a city gripped by poverty.
When he makes a small fortune from the publication of a short story, he reinvents himself, indulging in expensive clothes, fine food and downtown strip clubs. But Bandini’s delusions take a worrying turn when he is drawn into a relationship with Camilla Lopez, a beautiful but troubled young woman who will be responsible for his greatest downfall.
Ask the Dust is an unforgettable novel about outsiders looking in on a town built on celluloid dreams.
Read the book, listen to the podcast, and tell us what you think.
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