Admit One By Emmett James

Book Description

Set in Croydon, South London, in the 1980s, Admit One details how self-deprecating writer Emmett James escaped from the pains of adolescence by going to the cinema. Through wry wit and observation, the writer reflects, obsesses, and rages about film and its correlation to our pasts. Life soon imitates art, and the narrator finds that his true calling is in transcendence from one side of the screen to the other. He decides to leave England for the only place where he can realize his dream of becoming an actor--Hollywood.

We follow the narrator on his numerous adventures: as he jumps from forgery to pornography to crashing the Academy Awards under the alias of a nominated writer. All the while, the films that inspired each tale contextualize this humorous collection of stories. The narrator ultimately provides a unique insight into the fascinating industry of film, eventually himself stumbling into the biggest box-office grossing film of all time.

My thoughts

Emmett James’ life from childhood in England to his life now in Hollywood can be summed up with the various movies he favors. Well, at least that is how ADMIT ONE is written. Movies were an escape for him as a child and hard for him to break into as adult. I found his writing amusing and witty. It’s a tough world in Hollywood and Emmett takes his punches and lives to write about it. This was a very amusing memoir. And now, I have to go an re-watch “Titanic” so I can view his greatest accomplishment to date.

Disclaimer: I received the book for review from the author. I received no compensation for my review.