To be honest, there's so much stuff in this book, subjects all over the map, that I'm having trouble writing a review. Every subject hit me a little differently. I found myself getting extremely bored on one tale, and then immensely enjoying another. That I had trouble getting past the first 30 pages had no bearing on how much I enjoyed the middle 10, or indeed that story about the writing workshop, which came near the end and was one of the best. R.A. Salvatore said that you know you are really a writer only if you just can't stop, and Sandra Tsing Loh makes this point wonderfully.

One reason I read this book is because it was apparently about Van Nuys; however, that suburb of Los Angeles did not figure into the book nearly as much as I thought it would. The author devotes too much time and energy on Hollywood, which is a very different place from the San Fernando Valley (which Van Nuys is part of), so the title may be misleading.

You don't really need to know much about Los Angeles to understand this book, but a good knowledge of pop culture of the time helps. Recommended if you like those things and amusing streams of consciousness as well as the subjects of writing and aging.