Ask the dust

Ask the Dust is a classic of American literature and John Fante's biggest hit.

At the height of the 1930s depression, Arturo Bandini dreams of becoming a famous writer. In an attempt to write something, he checks into a cheap hotel room in Los Angeles, but the plan soon proves a failure: Arturo's money is running out, and he still hasn't managed to write. That's when he meets the weary and unstable Camilla Lopez, a Mexican waitress who dreams of finding a good husband and quitting her job. Together, they begin a turbulent relationship, based on desire, jealousy, contempt, love, and hate.

Struggling to survive, he persists amid poverty and prejudice until, finally, his first story is published. But the enthusiasm of youth and the thrill of success are extinguished when Camilla has a breakdown and disappears. Slowly but inexorably, Bandini gives in to madness and begins to reject the life of a writer he fought so hard to achieve.

John Fante portrays the ups and downs of Bandini's emotional state with conviction and bluntness. Ask the Dust reveals the truth behind the life of a poor immigrant's son in perfect, glamorous California.

“I borrowed the book, took it to my room, climbed into bed, and read it, and I knew long before I finished that here was a man who had developed a peculiar way of writing. The book was Ask the Dust , and the author was John Fante. He would become a lifelong influence on my writing.” - Charles Bukowski