Erasure
Thelonius "Monk" Ellison is an erudite, accomplished but seldom-read author who insists on writing obscure literary papers rather than the so-called "ghetto prose" that would make him a commercial success. He finally succumbs to temptation after seeing the Oberlin-educated author of We's Lives in da Ghetto during her appearance on a talk show, firing back with a parody called My Pafology, which he submits to his startled agent under the gangsta pseudonym of Stagg R. Leigh. Ellison quickly finds himself with a six-figure advance from a major house, a multimillion-dollar offer for the movie rights and a monster bestseller on his hands. The money helps with a family crisis, allowing Ellison to care for his widowed mother as she drifts into the fog of Alzheimer's, but it doesn't ease the pain after his sister, a physician, is shot by right-wing fanatics for performing abortions. The dark side of wealth surfaces when both the movie mogul and talk-show host demand to meet the nonexistent Leigh, forcing Ellison to don a disguise and invent a sullen, enigmatic character to meet the demands of the market. The final indignity occurs when Ellison becomes a judge for a major book award and My Pafology (title changed to Fuck) gets nominated, forcing the author to come to terms with his perverse literary joke.
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2020–2026years
67% recommend33% neutral
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- The Complete Yes Minister, a novelization of the TV show, but probably more approachable. A kind of "high brow" skewering of politics and government. There's a lot of interplay between politicians and civil servants that mirrors some play between politicians and people, especially in the case of "systemic lag".
Erasure by Percival Everett. A book on racial conformity and expectations. A weird case where the movie (American Fiction) might be better than the book. Pretty easy and quick read however. I don't know what it was but this book has stuck with me ever since I've read it.
The Code Book by Simon Singh. This is the book that got me into cryptography. It's a bit old and outdated now (published in 1999) but it was responsible for forming a lifelong interest in me.
Arriving Today: From Factory to Front Door by Christopher Mims. The premise was supposed to be tracking a product from production to consumer, but then the COVID happened. The book turns into an exploration of how just in time production and supply lanes work today.
The Dictator's Handbook by Bruce Bueno de Mesquita. I had a professor who was friends with BBM, so when we were discussing selectorate theory we actually got to meet him. At it's core this is a cynical book about realpolitik, talking about how leaders get in power, stay in power, get money and foreign aid, and deal with revolutions and war. It is very political focused but the theory can be abstracted out to most big organizations. It fundamentally changed the way I look at interactions between countries. This is 100% a more mass market appeal book than the original paper (and imo a bit dumbed down) but everyone I've recommended it to has come back appreciative about it.
- I really like this Paris Review interview. It illuminates a lot about Percival Everett's character and way of working. He is one of my favorite authors. Sadly not nearly as well known as he deserves.
Long ago, I read God's Country (2003), which was strange and captivating. Erasure (2011) was flat out very funny [1].
His latest book, Telephone[2], which came out four months ago, is top of my "buy next" list (actually, I just ordered it...). Most people don't know it is printed in three different versions, with nearly identical covers. If you order it online, you won't know which version you'll receive [3]!
[1] https://www.amazon.com/dp/1555975992. Though I'm disappointed the current cover is family-friendly. My original hardback copy from 2011 has this cover: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/31ieK15vpnL...
[2] https://www.amazon.com/dp/1644450224
[3] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/03/books/percival-everett-te...
- This matches what was lampooned in Erasure(2001) by Percival Everett and adapted into the movie American Fiction.
