NYT Overlooks Mailer’s Slap
An eagle-eyed and sharp-eared reader wrote to us about the NYT coverage of the National Book Awards, particularly Norman Mailer’s speech:
“‘The serious novel may be in serious decline,’ he said, asking rhetorically how many in the audience enjoy reading ‘an egregiously cruel review’ of a serious novel more than trying to appreciate the art involved in creating such a work.”
As our reader points out, what Mailer specifically said was “an egregiously cruel review in the New York Times Book Review.” I wouldn’t say there’s anything especially sinister about the omission, though; in fact, it’s not even my favorite lacuna from the summary of the speech. That would be in the sentence where Edward Wyatt reports that “[Mailer] was introduced by Toni Morrison, the author and Nobel laureate, who called him ‘a huge and provocative talent’ with ‘a carnivorous intelligence.’” She also made it quite clear that she believed Mailer possesses “a comic obtuseness towards women” (a line which did make it into the Associated Press account).
I should also point out a bit in the Book Standard coverage, where they mention that William T. Vollmann “came off quite charming, saying that he hadn’t expected to win, and so hadn’t prepared a speech.” I, too, quite sure I heard him say, “I didn’t think I would win,” but then both the Times and AP had it as “I thought I would lose,” which is technically the same sentiment but then again quite a different one, if you catch my point. (Apparently, though, if you go to the tape, I misheard.) I also like how the Standard boys editorialize that “Vollmann’s win, then, may have been in part a big fat raspberry directed at the people who hoped the award would go to someone who sells.”
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