I was two when it came out in 1984, and only recently learned about it, how it was the seminal debut novel from twentysomething writer Jay McInerney.
Though he skyrocketed to the status of bonafide literary star, I'm not sure his subsequent stories ever outdid the big hoopla of "Bright Lights." I'd like to read more of his books, but haven't decided which one I'll jump to next.
A book snapshot can be found here. In short, we follow a cool but confused young man -- he works as a fact checker at a prominent magazine and his wife recently left him while on a modeling job in Paris -- during a week in Manhattan where his life begins to unravel as illusion and reality collide.
It's a quick read, and I learned a lot about Manhattan during the hedonist '80s days. Besides, now I know to check out the classic French bistro, The Odeon. Great French onion soup there, I hear.
