A One-Way Lovefest at Slate
Slate's running a dialogue this week between critic Stephen Metcalf and novelist Walter Kirn about Kirn's new book, Mission to America.
I point it out because Kirn is one of my favorite writers, though I'm much more familiar with his reviews and essays than his fiction. There's a strange dynamic at work here, too. Metcalf is over-the-top in his praise of the book, but Kirn essentially ignores it -- doesn't even acknowledge it with a "Oh, stop; I'm blushing." A bit strange in that regard, but it's piqued my interest in the novel, and Kirn is sharp as always.
I point it out because Kirn is one of my favorite writers, though I'm much more familiar with his reviews and essays than his fiction. There's a strange dynamic at work here, too. Metcalf is over-the-top in his praise of the book, but Kirn essentially ignores it -- doesn't even acknowledge it with a "Oh, stop; I'm blushing." A bit strange in that regard, but it's piqued my interest in the novel, and Kirn is sharp as always.
posted by JMW at 6:38 PM
1 Comments:
Did you read the review in the Times last week? It was Paul Gray, I think. He basically said it was the most fully realized of Kirn's novels, but that it failed to follow through on a really promising beginning. I've never read any of his (Kirn's) fiction, but I heard him interviewed on WNYC about 'Thumbsucker,' and it made me want to check him out. I'll take a look at the Slate dialogue.
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