What do you think?
Rate this book
Desperate Living: A Screenplay
A grotesque and hilarious satire about the American dream, suburban living, and the corrupting influence of power, set in a world that could only have sprung from the unhinged and brilliant mind of John Waters.
On the verge of a suburban mental health crisis, frazzled and wildly unstable housewife Peggy (immortalized by Mink Stole on-screen) runs away from home with her maid and partner in crime, Grizelda (played with spectacular gumption by the sizzling Jean Hill), only to end up in Mortville, a shantytown filled with society’s rejects. Mortville is run by the evil Queen Carlotta, who parades through the cardboard streets taunting and terrorizing her subjects.
John Waters’s wild and visionary fable lampoons everything from the staid conservatism of the American dream to race and class relations. The New York Times ranked Desperate Living at “the highest peak atop [John Waters]’s trash heap of a filmography.” High praise indeed!
On the verge of a suburban mental health crisis, frazzled and wildly unstable housewife Peggy (immortalized by Mink Stole on-screen) runs away from home with her maid and partner in crime, Grizelda (played with spectacular gumption by the sizzling Jean Hill), only to end up in Mortville, a shantytown filled with society’s rejects. Mortville is run by the evil Queen Carlotta, who parades through the cardboard streets taunting and terrorizing her subjects.
John Waters’s wild and visionary fable lampoons everything from the staid conservatism of the American dream to race and class relations. The New York Times ranked Desperate Living at “the highest peak atop [John Waters]’s trash heap of a filmography.” High praise indeed!
96 pages, Paperback
Published May 27, 2025
3 people are currently reading
31 people want to read
About the author
John Waters
101 books1,508 followersJohn Samuel Waters, Jr. is an American filmmaker, actor, writer, personality, visual artist and art collector, who rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films: Pink Flamingos and Hairspray. He is recognizable by his pencil-thin moustache.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 10, 2026
I got to hear John Waters speak at AWP, bought Pink Flamingos, Multiple Maniacs, Liar Mouth and Desperate Living: A Screenplay. Together they are some of my most impressive additions to my collection and getting to hear him speak was one of the most amazing moments of my early career.
Trashy and groteqsue. I can only imagine seeing the film. John Waters is of course one of those writers who I think can be difficult to interact with. There were times even I was disturbed by what I was reading (any depiction of sexual assult can really turn me away from a reading, not because I think it shouldn't be talked about, but because I think it is very difficult to talk about well). However, I think John Waters is just one of those writers who, whether its because he has such a diverse team of women backing and assisting his work or otherwise, gets a pass in my eyes to talk about and show the extremes of life that we might otherwise deem irresponsibly represented by other male artists.
There are graphic transphobic scenes between Muffy and Mole which surprised me, they didn't feel cosher, but that I forgave, for sake of trashy representation still being representation, and because again John Waters gets a pass in may of these regards for developing the conversation.
And of course, these moments could seem transphobic at first glance but quite possibly not a single trans person cares.
Trashy and groteqsue. I can only imagine seeing the film. John Waters is of course one of those writers who I think can be difficult to interact with. There were times even I was disturbed by what I was reading (any depiction of sexual assult can really turn me away from a reading, not because I think it shouldn't be talked about, but because I think it is very difficult to talk about well). However, I think John Waters is just one of those writers who, whether its because he has such a diverse team of women backing and assisting his work or otherwise, gets a pass in my eyes to talk about and show the extremes of life that we might otherwise deem irresponsibly represented by other male artists.
There are graphic transphobic scenes between Muffy and Mole which surprised me, they didn't feel cosher, but that I forgave, for sake of trashy representation still being representation, and because again John Waters gets a pass in may of these regards for developing the conversation.
And of course, these moments could seem transphobic at first glance but quite possibly not a single trans person cares.
October 22, 2025
Thanks to Macmillan Audio, the amazing John Waters (author), and Libro.fm for providing a free advance audiobook of Desperate Livng: A Screenplay expertly read by John Waters himself. Getting free stuff does not influence my reviews in any way.
In this third installment of Waters’ ‘Trash Trilogy’, we follow the many misadventures of suburban housewife on the run Peggy and her maid Grizelda. It is really trashy and yucky and campy and really depraved, but I loved it like all his other stuff. 5 stars!
In this third installment of Waters’ ‘Trash Trilogy’, we follow the many misadventures of suburban housewife on the run Peggy and her maid Grizelda. It is really trashy and yucky and campy and really depraved, but I loved it like all his other stuff. 5 stars!
January 20, 2026
Mink Stole is the best and this script/movie has a quote some of us can resonate with....
"I HATE THE SUPREME COURT!"
"I HATE THE SUPREME COURT!"
April 20, 2026
(2.25 rounded down) Socially grotesque and manically awkward. I didn't know what I was getting myself into for this one. The narration by the author was adorably absurd though.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews