When the Oxford American was located in Oxford, Mississippi, it was bankrolled by John Grisham.
I wasn’t aware of this, or even of the origin of its name. So it was obviously based in Ole Miss. I
did wonder about the title of course, and no doubt it's on their website, but that clarifies things.
When I drove to New Albany, Mississippi, last September/October, we asked for directions to Cleveland Street, where William Faulkner was born, and where there’s a plaque on the corner of Jefferson remembering his birth there. We were very lucky in that the person we asked had a strong interest in Faulkner and appreciated literature in general, although he was very disappointed that we were on our way
from Oxford and hadn't seen Grisham's house, although we weren't even aware of it at the time.
Why he withdrew his support I don't know. In those same years the magazine was nearly bankrupted by a corrupt office manager who apparently embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Even more interesting!
I, for one, wouldn't have mourned its demise overmuch.
Oh dear.
Although it often publishes very good stuff, I find its exclusive focus on the American South off-putting.
But Bubba, we’re talking about an organ that calls itself ‘The Southern Magazine of Good Writing’, and it
is. It’s exclusively, although very broadly but generously in terms of geographical definition, about the American South. The South is its
raison d'?tre, and it stands as a kind of bastion against the cultural hegemony of the North-east in particular (you know, the home of the publishers I believe you appear not to appreciate too much?). You wanna read Updike, Roth, Irving, or any of their many imitators, then OK. But I don’t think you
do, Bubba, do you?. So why shouldn’t a magazine specialize in advertising the South, as it has so much to offer, and so little has really been written about it? Most non-Americans think of the USA as New York (which almost exclusively means Manhattan), California (but mainly LA and San Francisco), Las Vegas, Florida (but just Miami, and Orlando for Disney), and maybe Chicago (for the mobster rather than the Obama or the Bellow effect). Images of the South in popular culture still follow the old stereotypes, and people from the North still think civilisation ends south of the Mason-Dixon line.
I’ve been listening to the CDs of Southern music (from the 1940s to today) that came with the current issue of
Oxford American, and reading about each track as I listen, and I’m often amazed by the quality of the material. The wonderful Caroline Herring, above all, is a performer who deserves a very prominent place in the canon of modern music, but how many people - even in the South - have heard of her? I’ve only heard of her because of the existence of this magazine, and I’m very pleased to have done so. I’m sure many other people must feel the same about Caroline Herring or any of the other often obscure artists featured on these CDs.
To clarify, Lionel, I should say I read novels and stories for entertainment alone
OK, but I still think we have a problem. To me, entertainment means wasting time, just reading, watching or listening to things
mindlessly. Time is precious, and wasting it is a crime. Many people do just that, but I think you and I don’t. I don’t know if that’s clarified things, but at least I’ve tried.
if I want to learn something I'll read Wikipedia
I’d be careful with Wikipedia: I once wanted to find out about Angela Carter’s
Wise Children, and couldn’t believe I was reading about a porn novel. The sabotage was later deleted by the Wikipedia police force, but as it was a set college text at the time it could perhaps have given a slightly incorrect impression! The main (maybe the only, I don’t remember) Wikipedia entry I’ve made is about Lionel Britton, but I’m regularly policing the thing as it gets sabotaged frequently.
I've never read any Gaines, though he and I share a home state and the college I graduated from gave him an award and invited him to speak to the students.
Gaines is well worth looking into. I’d also really push Reynolds Price, although he’s from North Carolina, which is of course a
little distance away.
Do indeed read Portis, but don't start with Masters of Atlantis. I think I've read all of Portis's books four or five times, and I expect will go on rereading them every so often for the rest of my life. They are that good.
I now have a copy of
True Grit, and I must admit that I think I have to interrupt my second reading of Selah Saterstrom’s
The Pink Institution in order to read it. But I intend no criticism of Saterstrom by that, and far from it: it’s very unusual that I read a book twice.
By the way, Lionel, I don't hate or even dislike Bola?o (for the most part, in fact, his seems to me an appealing personality); the reception of his work, on the other hand, is symptomatic of a phenomenon I detest deeply.
That clarifies something that I’d misunderstood, or perhaps not picked up on. Yeah, I agree that it will be very interesting to see how Bola?o weathers after all the eulogies die down.
Many thanks for this contribution, Bubba.
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