Synopsis
"My Search for Warren Harding" by Robert Plunket is a satirical, darkly comedic novel that follows the misadventures of Elliot Weiner, a deeply flawed and self-absorbed historian obsessed with uncovering intimate details about the life of Warren Harding, the 29th President of the United States, often regarded as one of the shallowest figures to hold the office. First published in 1983 and later reissued by New Directions in 2023, the story is set against the fading glamour of early 1980s Hollywood, where Weiner, armed with a Harvard BA and Columbia PhD, relocates from the East Coast to pursue a research grant aimed at producing a scandalous biography of Harding. His quest centers on a rumored trunk of bawdy love letters allegedly written by Harding to his mistress, Rebekah Kinney, now an elderly recluse living in a decaying Hollywood Hills estate. Weiner’s single-minded determination to obtain these letters drives the narrative, pulling him into a web of deceit, humiliation, and absurd schemes that expose both his own moral failings and the ridiculousness of the world around him.
Elliot Weiner is a complex and unlikable protagonist, a closeted gay man whose bigotry, snobbery, and self-loathing manifest in his cruel judgments of others—whether it’s fat-shaming, racism, or disdain for those he deems beneath him. His academic pretensions and passion for Morris dancing only add to his eccentric, pompous persona. Upon learning of the letters, Weiner concocts a plan to infiltrate Kinney’s life by seducing her granddaughter, Jonica, a lonely and overweight young woman who quickly falls for him. This relationship becomes a vehicle for both cringe-worthy comedy and biting satire, as Weiner manipulates Jonica with a mix of feigned affection and calculated disdain, all while plotting to gain access to the coveted documents. The novel’s humor emerges from Weiner’s over-the-top narration, which blends biting cultural observations with a steady stream of self-delusion, as he stumbles through a series of increasingly farcical situations—most notably a disastrous yacht outing involving the Coast Guard and a giant canvas diaper.
Plunket’s writing draws heavily on literary influences, particularly Henry James’s "The Aspern Papers," reimagining its premise of literary sleuthing in a modern, irreverent context. The book unfolds as a picaresque tale, with Weiner’s journey marked by a relentless pursuit of his goal and a refusal to let any moral boundary or personal indignity stand in his way. The Hollywood setting amplifies the absurdity, offering a backdrop of faded stardom and quirky characters that Weiner skewers with his acerbic wit. Yet beneath the surface hilarity lies a sharper commentary on ambition, identity, and the lengths to which people will go to secure their place in history—or at least their version of it. Weiner’s repressed homosexuality adds a layer of psychological depth, as his internal conflict fuels his external venom, making him both a product of his time and a timeless caricature of human folly.
The novel’s structure enhances its comedic effect, incorporating exaggerated tangents, mock-scholarly footnotes, and even recipes (like cold squash soup and sour cream coffee cake), which nod to Vladimir Nabokov’s "Pale Fire" while grounding the story in its own peculiar rhythm. Plunket’s prose is effortless and conversational, delivering punchlines with a stand-up comedian’s timing, yet it never shies away from the brutality of its satire. As Weiner’s schemes unravel—predictably, given the chaos he sows—the reader is left both laughing and recoiling at his downfall, a schadenfreude-laden resolution that feels earned. Critics have praised the book as a standout in American comic fiction, with its blend of high camp, low blows, and a subversive queer sensibility that defies easy categorization. Rediscovered decades after its initial release, "My Search for Warren Harding" remains a gleefully unapologetic romp, a testament to Plunket’s ability to find entertainment in the wreckage of human vanity.