William Boyd on his friend Martin Amis: ‘He was ferociously intelligent – and very funny’

He saw the world’s cruel absurdities through a comic lens, writes Boyd, who recalls his very first meeting with Amis – and explains why his unmistakable voice will never be forgotten• John Self on Amis: ‘He stamped his style over a generation’• Geoff Dyer on Amis: ‘Mick Jagger in literary form’The awful news of Martin Amis’s death prompts a rush of memories. I first met him in 1969, in Paris, when we both found ourselves staying in the same apartment on the Île Saint-Louis for a few days. I was 17, Martin was 20. I only realised who this Martin guy was four years later when his first novel, The Rachel Papers, appeared. In a strange but real sense, he was the first writer I had ever met. And thus began an acquaintance as an avid reader and later as a friend.The remarkable thing about that first novel was the utter confidence and distinctiveness of the narrative voice. Martin found his style at the very beginning of his career as a writer and it never changed. That voice he had defined and charged everything else he wrote – fiction, essays, journalism, memoirs. Very few writers can be instantly identified by a sentence or two of their prose – Laurence Sterne, Charles Dickens, James Joyce, DH Lawrence, Vladimir Nabokov – and Martin precociously joined that elite group and stayed there. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2023-05-22 07:00:49 UTC ]
News tagged with: #avid reader #charles dickens #james joyce #vladimir nabokov #elite group #first novel

Other Publishing stories related to: 'William Boyd on his friend Martin Amis: ‘He was ferociously intelligent – and very funny’'


Larry Hughes, Longtime William Morrow Chief, Dies at 98

Larry Hughes, who began his publishing career as an assistant editor at Pocket Books in 1949 and rose to become chairman of the Hearst Trade Book Group some 40 years later, died on November 14. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-28 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Amy Schneider is More Than A Jeopardy! Champion

Amy Schneider’s new memoir is honest and so very reasonable. The Jeopardy! winner shares insight and experiences in her new memoir. Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2023-11-08 10:00:00 UTC ]
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Celebrity Narrators: The ‘Matchmaking’ Behind Britney Spears and Michelle Williams

Snippets of Michelle Williams’s narration of Britney Spears’s new memoir have proved explosively popular online. But what goes into selecting a celebrity reader for an audiobook? Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-11-01 22:47:54 UTC ]
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A Clip Of Michelle Williams Narrating Britney Spears' Audiobook Is Going Viral For A Certain Justin Timberlake Moment

"I gagged when it was revealed who Justin Timberlake was throwing on a blaccent for." Continue reading at HuffPost

[ HuffPost | 2023-10-28 12:00:26 UTC ]
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Eley Williams

Best of Young British Novelists 2023 ‘Certainly this kind of thing just happened sometimes – it was a glitch, an unfortunate error, and could happen to anyone.’ – Rostrum The post Eley Williams appeared first on Granta. Continue reading at Granta

[ Granta | 2023-10-25 16:21:36 UTC ]
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Michelle Williams does a viral Justin Timberlake impression as she narrates Britney Spears' memoir

Michelle Williams' impression of Justin Timberlake as she narrates Britney Spears' memoir is going viral as 'the greatest clip of audio since Watergate.' Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-10-25 01:06:01 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #michelle williams #justin timberlake #memoir


Help! Is It Okay to Ghost A Friend?

Jenée Desmond-Harris is joined by best-selling author of Bad Feminist and Opinions, Roxane Gay. Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2023-10-20 09:00:00 UTC ]
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Serena Williams Has a Two-Book Deal, Including a Memoir

Serena Williams just announced a book deal with Random House Publishing Group. Here's what we know so far. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-10-19 16:48:02 UTC ]
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Serena Williams to publish memoir about life ‘on and off the court’

The tennis champion has signed a two-book deal with Penguin Random House, saying it will be the first time she has paused and reflected on her remarkable career Serena Williams is set to publish two books, the first of which, a memoir, will take an “intimate” look at her childhood and remarkable... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-10-18 14:56:05 UTC ]
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Arnold Intelligence: Schwarzenegger Spoofs AI to Promote His New Book

Arnold Schwarzenegger has been many things: bodybuilder, movie star, governor of California-and now a self-help guru. This month, Schwarzenegger released a self-help book titled, Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life. Since he's no ordinary star, publisher Penguin Press knew it couldn't promote the... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2023-10-18 13:30:00 UTC ]
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Michelle Williams will narrate audiobook for Britney Spears' memoir, 'The Woman in Me'

Britney Spears said that 'reliving everything' in her memoir, 'The Woman in Me,' has been 'heart-wrenching,' so she's only recording an intro for the audiobook. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-10-13 17:27:42 UTC ]
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How to watch Martin Baron discuss 'Collision of Power' at the L.A. Times Book Club

Editor Martin Baron will discuss "Collision of Power: Trump, Bezos and the Washington Post" at L.A. Times Book Club night at USC. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-10-11 21:08:41 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘The Controversialist,’ by Martin Peretz

In his memoir “The Controversialist,” Martin Peretz reflects on his long tenure as publisher and editor of The New Republic. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-10-02 14:15:47 UTC ]
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'Jeopardy' vet Amy Schneider runs the board on drugs, polyamory, transphobia and more

Schneider's memoir 'In the Form of a Question' mines the 'Jeopardy!' star's life — acid trips, polyamory, fame, fears and how Leo DiCaprio didn't do it for her. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-09-30 15:38:29 UTC ]
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Book Review: ‘Collision of Power,’ by Martin Baron

“Collision of Power,” Martin Baron’s memoir of his tenure as the paper’s executive editor, is a gripping chronicle of politics and journalism in a period of instability for both. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-09-30 09:00:50 UTC ]
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An AI Game of Thrones prequel? No wonder George RR Martin’s raining ice and fire on ChatGPT | Tim Adams

Authors have entered a war over words with OpenAI for using their books as ‘training’ feedstockBattles between human and artificial intelligence are no longer science fiction. The strikes in Hollywood led by the united guilds of actors and screenwriters have a common, intangible enemy: the... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-09-23 15:03:31 UTC ]
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Exclusive: See the cover for Amy Lin’s Here After.

Literary Hub is pleased to reveal the cover for Amy Lin’s debut memoir Here After, which will be published by Zibby Books in March. Here’s a bit more about the book from the publisher: Here After is an intimate story of deep love followed by dizzying loss; a stunning, taut memoir from debut... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-09-20 14:00:02 UTC ]
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Amy Einhorn Named Fiction Publisher at Crown

The publisher will leave Macmillan's Henry Holt imprint to spearhead the fiction program at Crown Publishing Group. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-08-30 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Former 'Friends' writer says the stars were unhappy and purposely tanked jokes they didn't like

A former "Friends" writer's new memoir details her experience on the show at a time when the stars seemed unhappy, and the writers room wasn't so friendly. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-08-25 01:20:03 UTC ]
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‘A tired old show’: Friends writer claims cast deliberately ruined jokes

Patty Lin says that Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry and co forced rewrites of gags they didn’t like by performing them badlyFriends may have been a worldwide smash hit that made megastars of its cast, but – according to one of its writers – the actors weren’t always trying their... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-08-24 10:34:01 UTC ]
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