"The Great American Novel"-- Edith Wharton Set during the Roaring Twenties, this witty social satire of the Jazz Age was a runaway best seller in 1925. Written in diary form, the story follows the escapades of gold-digging flapper Lorelei Lee and her best friend, Dorothy, from New York to Europe. Supposedly inspired by literary critic H. L. Mencken's flirtation with a blonde actress, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes originally was written by Hollywood silent-era screenwriter Anita Loos as a series of short pieces in Harper's Bazaar. The book has inspired many adaptations for stage and screen, its most famous being the 1953 film starring Marilyn Monroe, in which Monroe sang "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend."
