The Last Word argues that the Hollywood novel opened up space for cultural critique of the film industry at a time when the industry lacked the capacity to critique itself. Through the decades of the studio system, these novels sought to expose the invisible machinery of classical Hollywoodcinema, including not only the evolving artifice of the screen but also the promotional discourse that complemented it. If the Hollywood novel provided a perspective on film culture unavailable in other outlets throughout the 1920s and 1930s, its relevance gradually declined in the 1940s and 1950sas filmmakers developed the resources necessary to expose the dark side of Hollywood on screen. As a result, in its ongoing quest to deliver the unfilmable, the Hollywood novel by the 1960s devolved into a toothless genre that offered readers little more than erotic fantasy of movie stars behindclosed doors. Still, in their unique ability to speak beyond the institutional restraints of their time, these texts offer a window into Hollywood's dynamic creation and re-creation of itself in the public imagination. | The Last Word by Justin Gautreau, Paperback | Indigo Chapters