Vincent's review
The Human Stain by Philip Roth
Mr. Roth,
Your banal prose and elementary gimmicks do nothing to endear yourself to me, sir. If, in the future, a thought flies into your head and you would like to put it down on paper, I would first suggest that you hide or burn every John Updike novel you've been petting to sleep each night, get yourself a fistful of fresh adjectives, and wipe your nose. Far too much of you gets onto the page, sir, and none of it is to your credit.
Many people are impressed because you wrote American Pastoral. I warn you that I am not so easily amused.
With a careful eye,
Vincent Saint-Simon
Your banal prose and elementary gimmicks do nothing to endear yourself to me, sir. If, in the future, a thought flies into your head and you would like to put it down on paper, I would first suggest that you hide or burn every John Updike novel you've been petting to sleep each night, get yourself a fistful of fresh adjectives, and wipe your nose. Far too much of you gets onto the page, sir, and none of it is to your credit.
Many people are impressed because you wrote American Pastoral. I warn you that I am not so easily amused.
With a careful eye,
Vincent Saint-Simon
