--- Jonathan Bravard <
jon.bravard@gmail.com> wrote:
> I must admit I have yet to read Ellroy's
newer
> stuff. More so because his
> change in attitude bothered me, others
have
> mentioned his slide into pity me
> attitude, while I have noticed a rather hard
right
> turn in his writing of
> late(magazine pieces he has written or were
written
> about him).
> Some one mentioned he seems to have stayed in
to
> racism.
>
> Can anyone expand on that?
**************************************************** If you
read MY DARK PLACES he was deeply involved in extreme right
wing politics at a time in Los Angeles when it was seriously
out of vogue. He has this side to him. I think he's been
smart enough to keep it out of his work for the most part.
But can anyone keep anthing out of their art that is really a
part of them? Personally, I don't read authors for their
political pov. I love Sjö·¡¬l and Wahlö¶ ªust as much as I do Ian
Fleming and Howard Hunt. As long as the writer's interests
add depth to the story, I'm down with it. Unlike Willeford
and Leonard, Ellroy does not bring a great sense of humor to
his work. I don't see his art as 'pity me' so much as he's
using it to discover the depth of his own anguish.
Personally, I'm along for the ride for the long run. I can
see where it might be too deep and too dark for someone
looking for an escapist read. I'm among those who believes
Ellroy is moving noir/hardboiled into literature. His work is
probably already being taught in colleges. As a stylist
Ellroy has a lot of guts and his lifestyle has left him with
something significant to say. Among the living he's at the
top of the ladder and a place is already made for him among
the sanctified dead.
Patrick King
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