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And as the reader gets to know Reidy, his biographical charm, such as it is, begins to set in. To his credit, Reidy seems perfectly comfortable relating the less than savory ends of his personality - particularly his lack of motivation, which seems to almost be a point of pride for the author. Whether it’s entirely honest or not, Reidy successfully gives the impression that he is relating the events of his life in a plain, straightforward fashion - one that in no way embellishes or glamorizes his life. If there’s a source of Reidy’s charm - a place where readers have connected-up with him solidly enough to make his book successful, it’s the casual humility of his narrative.

The biggest appeal of the book itself is Reidy’s straightforward and evidently honest look at the sales end of the pharmaceutical industry. While it’s gotten considerably more sophisticated and regulated since the events of the book, it’s a fascinating look at the way drugs are marketed. For the uninitiated, it’s a bit of a shock to find out where some of the money paid for new prescription drugs ultimately ends-up. Anyone who has paid what seems like black market prices for brand new prescription drugs may find it a bit unnerving to read about the kind of money being spent marketing those very drugs. Busy people who are as overworked as they are overpaid, doctors don’t have time to keep-up on the latest trends in pharmacology, so they rely on the sales reps for information. Reidy relates all of this with an admirable impartiality, making it a surprisingly balanced look at the way prescription drugs get sold in this country.

The books merits burn-out pretty quickly. Shoddy overall composition keeps the book as a whole from being very satisfying. The Viagra portion of the book doesn’t really arrive until the very end, by which time Reidy has evidently run out of steam. The news that Reidy has, in fact, become one of Pfizer’s leading sales reps after he’d decided to quit the job altogether is delivered with no particular sense of significance. Reidy may as well have ended the book going on at great detail about drinking a beer or cleaning-up after a dog. There’s no sense of conclusion to Hard Sell. And without an overall plot arc or any cohesive sense of narrative, the story feels a bit lopsided. The lack of polish does help support the overall feeling of unpolished honesty, but it’s an honesty in the service of a remarkably directionless narrative. Without much insight beyond the basic delivery of the information, Hard Sell feels like a strikingly promising first draft.

The Movie

The film stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Jamie Randall - a variation on the book’s author Jamie Reidy. Though there are parallels between Jamies, the two are distinctly different and thus take the center stage in significantly different stories. As the film opens, we see the first significant difference - Randall is seen working an electronics store in the mid-‘90s. Lacking the military background of Reidy, Randall is seen here as a born salesman who is working way below his potential in a cheap electronics store. Sure, he makes commission, but he’s clearly a brilliant salesman. His one big limitation is his lack of motivation to succeed in anything other than charming women, which he does exceedingly well.

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