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Shopping in Space: Essays on America's Blank Generation Fiction
A selection of literary criticism and cultural commentary that provides a broad assessment of the American "brat pack" writers such as Jay McInerney, Bret Easton Ellis and Tama Janowitz - authors who have had commercial success, but whose output is often dismissed as shallow.
- GenresEssaysNonfiction
288 pages, Paperback
Published July 7, 1994
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69 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Young
5 books3 followersLibrarian note: There is more than one author with this name in the Goodreads database.
Elizabeth Jesse Young was a London-based literary critic and author, who wrote principally on cult writers for a range of British newspapers and magazines. In particular she championed transgressive fiction, for which she received some criticism in the press, not least for her defence of A. M. Homes' The End of Alice, which dealt with themes of paedophilia from what was seen as an uncomfortably neutral perspective.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Young received a Calvinist education in her parents' native Scotland, before discovering at the age of 11 the works of Nelson Algren, Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. The enduring fascination with the Beats was to stay with her. Before becoming a literary critic she worked in Compendium Books in Camden Town and was noted for her Goth appearance. In addition to literary criticism, Young's attraction to the counterculture saw her pen articles on drugs, music and pornography. She also appeared as Ray Gange's girlfriend in Rude Boy, the 1980 film about a roadie for The Clash.
Young acted as a champion for the US cult scene, with authors such as Bret Easton Ellis, Dennis Cooper and A. M. Homes receiving regular praise in her reviews. She also promoted the early talents of Poppy Z. Brite. In 1992, she and Graham Cavaney published Shopping in Space: Essays on American 'Blank Generation' Fiction (Serpent's Tail), which dealt extensively with the US literary underground, from Joel Rose to grindhouse movies. In terms of UK writers, she acted as an enthusiastic supporter of the talents of Stewart Home, Alasdair Gray, Alan Warner and Irvine Welsh.
In 2001, Young died from Hepatitis C. Later that year, a selection of her reviews and articles were collated in a volume published by Serpent's Tail, Pandora's Handbag, for which friend Will Self penned the introduction.
Elizabeth Jesse Young was a London-based literary critic and author, who wrote principally on cult writers for a range of British newspapers and magazines. In particular she championed transgressive fiction, for which she received some criticism in the press, not least for her defence of A. M. Homes' The End of Alice, which dealt with themes of paedophilia from what was seen as an uncomfortably neutral perspective.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Young received a Calvinist education in her parents' native Scotland, before discovering at the age of 11 the works of Nelson Algren, Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. The enduring fascination with the Beats was to stay with her. Before becoming a literary critic she worked in Compendium Books in Camden Town and was noted for her Goth appearance. In addition to literary criticism, Young's attraction to the counterculture saw her pen articles on drugs, music and pornography. She also appeared as Ray Gange's girlfriend in Rude Boy, the 1980 film about a roadie for The Clash.
Young acted as a champion for the US cult scene, with authors such as Bret Easton Ellis, Dennis Cooper and A. M. Homes receiving regular praise in her reviews. She also promoted the early talents of Poppy Z. Brite. In 1992, she and Graham Cavaney published Shopping in Space: Essays on American 'Blank Generation' Fiction (Serpent's Tail), which dealt extensively with the US literary underground, from Joel Rose to grindhouse movies. In terms of UK writers, she acted as an enthusiastic supporter of the talents of Stewart Home, Alasdair Gray, Alan Warner and Irvine Welsh.
In 2001, Young died from Hepatitis C. Later that year, a selection of her reviews and articles were collated in a volume published by Serpent's Tail, Pandora's Handbag, for which friend Will Self penned the introduction.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 10, 2019
If my soul was taken out of my body and turned into a book then this would be it.
Edit: just read this in full and think it’s so brilliant for my research area. It’s my absolute favourite essay collection and I love the writers as well as the novelists they discuss. Just perfect.
Edit: just read this in full and think it’s so brilliant for my research area. It’s my absolute favourite essay collection and I love the writers as well as the novelists they discuss. Just perfect.
June 2, 2019
Jeg har kun læst enkelte kapitler til mit speciale omkring "American Psycho", men de var værd at læse! Young skrev en af de første analyser af "American Psycho", og hun kommer med nogle interessante observationer i hendes analyse af værket.
December 31, 2021
Did definitely skim through this, mostly because I haven’t read many of the authors and wouldn’t have appreciated the analysis. Did love the chapters on Bret Easton Ellis and the ‘Ultravixens’ chapter though.
May 9, 2025
didn’t read the whole thing but i’ve decided i read enough to count it towards my reading goal
the american psycho chapter is one of my favorite bits of literary criticism i’ve had to read this semester hence the 3 stars
the american psycho chapter is one of my favorite bits of literary criticism i’ve had to read this semester hence the 3 stars
May 29, 2024
a really nice unexpected find at the last bookstore in la
January 27, 2010
I bought this book at a used book sale in the auditorium of the student center at my old University. I think I paid a quarter for it, maybe fifty-cents. I bought this in the mid-nineties, at point too soon for 80s nostalgia and prior to the brief revival of Bret Easton Ellis as fodder for film in the late 90's/early 2000s.
The best thing about this book is that it led me to Catherine Texier, Dennis Cooper and Mary Gaitskill (and their very, very naughty books about not always pleasing sex with bad people). Also to the now-much-more-famous Michael Chabon, whose "Mysteries of Pittsburgh" is still one of my favorite first novels.
Otherwise, this book is largely inessential.
The best thing about this book is that it led me to Catherine Texier, Dennis Cooper and Mary Gaitskill (and their very, very naughty books about not always pleasing sex with bad people). Also to the now-much-more-famous Michael Chabon, whose "Mysteries of Pittsburgh" is still one of my favorite first novels.
Otherwise, this book is largely inessential.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews