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The Moronic Inferno
The Moronic Inferno: And Other Visits to America | Martin Amis
3 posts | 3 read | 2 to read
At the age of ten, when Martin Amis spent a year in Princeton, New Jersey, he was excited and frightened by America. As an adult he has approached that confusing country from many arresting angles, and interviewed its literati, filmmakers, thinkers, opinion makers, leaders and crackpots with characteristic discernment and wit. Included in a gallery of Great American Novelists are Norman Mailer, Gore Vidal, Truman Capote, Joseph Heller, William Burroughs, Kurt Vonnegut, John Updike, Paul Theroux, Philip Roth and Saul Bellow. Amis also takes us to Dallas, where presidential candidate Ronald Reagan is attempting to liaise with born-again Christians. We glimpse the beau monde of Palm Beach, where each couple tries to out-Gatsby the other, and examine the case of Claus von Bulow. Steven Spielberg gets a visit, as does Brian de Palma, whom Amis asks why his films make no sense, and Hugh Hefner's sybaritic fortress and sanitised image are penetrated. There can be little that escapes the eye of Martin Amis when his curiosity leads him to a subject, and America has found in him a superlative chronicler.
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Abailliekaras
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Sorry, dear American Littens, I couldn't resist the title. It actually has some good essays (the title is from Saul Bellow). I might dip into it tonight... 🇺🇸

BookishFeminist 😂 no offense taken after what our political system has spewed. 8y
Abailliekaras @BookishFeminist we've had our moments in Oz (see Julia Gillard misogyny speech for a re-cap!) 😉 8y
BookishFeminist @Abailliekaras I think I'll pass. 😉😬😂 8y
moranadatter 😂😂😂 Thanks! Says one American. 8y
Abailliekaras @BookishFeminist do YouTube it if you haven't seen it. 13 minutes but well worth it! 🚺🗯 8y
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Abailliekaras
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#somethingborrowed from my husband #booktober Day 7 with photo bomb by my 7 year old 🙌🏻

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EnidBiteEm
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#happybirthday Martin Amis. No one points out the absurdity of US hero worship quite like Amis. Many of these essays are from the 1980s, but his interview range is extreme. Amis observes the bizarre in them all - from Reagan to Hefner. Half the essays in this collection critique authors, including Vonnegut. The title is borrowed from Saul Bellows, and in the half of the book that doesn't focus on reviews, the title is very apt. #writerbirthday

MrBook Ohhh, I love Amis' writing! 8y
EnidBiteEm @MrBook Moronic Inferno was my first taste, so I think I have a lot more reading to do ... tragic, I know ... 8y
MrBook Lol, try "Zone of Interest" 8y
EnidBiteEm @MrBook Thanks. Will do 😀 8y
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