The Blonde on the Street Corner by David Goodis
'She took a final drag at the cigarette, flipped it away, and said, I don't get this line of talk. It's way over my head... Maybe you're waiting for some dream girl to come along in a coach drawn by six white horses, and she'll pick you up and haul you away to the clouds, where it's all milk and honey and springtime all year around. Maybe that's what you're waiting for. That dream girl.' But the dream girl doesn't come. In the meantime Ralph must deal with the yearnings of everyday life and take what's offered. Written in 1954, The Blonde on the Street Corner is full of the passions and desires that are the hallmarks of a David Goodis novel.