THE MORONIC INFERNO

by Martin Amis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 1, 1986

An eclectic assortment of acerbic, lively, and often very funny essays, harvested from previous publication in newspapers and magazines, about American celebrities and phenomena, from the brash young English author of Money and The Rachel Papers. Upfront, Amis admits that his title is primarily ""a metaphor for human infamy."" His very British annoyance--mingled with awe--at the economic and cultural brawn of America provides the thread stitching this collection together. A majority of the essays focus on writers, among them Mailer, Bellow, Didion, Heller, and Vonnegut; some of these pieces are surgically incisive book reviews; others, penetrating portrait/interviews. All display a mature sensitivity to the inner workings of literature and the bookish life; most are comparatively gentle in tone, only slightly mocking, surely because here Amis shares his subjects' profession. Less kindly treated are the popular entertainers of the masses: film makers and rock 'n' rollers, represented by Elvis Presley, Steven Spielberg, Brian de Palina (""the innocent beneficiary of a cultural joke""), and, in the book's longest portrait, Hugh Hefner (""the remorselessly, the indefinitely gratified self""). Finally, Amis tosses his sharpest barbs at those who appear to practice only the actor's art of deception, including Jerry Falwell, Ronald Reagan, and Claus von Bulow. But as if to atone for his razor-sharp tongue, he concludes with a thoughtful, compassionate look at the havoc AIDS has wrought among American gays. Amis may write with a snob's sensibility, but he also writes with a pen so deft and sure as to make this collection a provocative delight.

Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1986

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1986

Categories: NONFICTION