Hi All- thanks for having me here as a guest on your blog! The joys of being done with grad school is that I've got the same hunger for literature, but have the time to read fun things now and follow up on all the great things I learn. I could (and will) write a long post about my new-found appreciation for Vonnegut (he's dead, so I can't write to him. I just missed him) and the fits of outloud giggles that Gabriel G. Marquez gives me. But my most favorite literature moment came on election day when I decided that Erica Jong herself must hear, from me, what I'd learned that day and how it related to her book. I looked up her email and wrote to her. This is what we'd had to say....
On 4, Nov 2008, , at 11:09 AM, Jillian Krupski wrote:
Ms. Jong,
This past weekend after a devastating breakup I was nursing my sore ego in the kitchen of my favorite aunt (editor's note: yes, ALMP, that's you! Hooray!) She handed me Fear of Flying and said “enjoy”. It is my first experience with your literature and I can’t put it down!
Today I read while standing in line to vote, attempting to pay no attention to the republican behind me reading over my shoulder. I assume he caught a dirty word and was intrigued. I was reading the chapter where Isadora and Goodlove are about to consumate their relationship for the first time and he calls her a stoat. “What is a stoat?” I thought. I had no clue. Then I followed a link that someone had sent me to a random website and found that a stoat was the featured animal of today. http://www.cuteoverload.com/
What a random set of coincidences. I highly doubt that this stoat has anything to do with the stoat to which Adrian referred, but it was funny nonetheless! Mystery solved!
Happy election day.
Jillian Krupski
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From: emjongburrows@mac.com [mailto:emjongburrows@mac.com] Sent: Tuesday, November 04, 2008 11:32 AMTo: Jillian KrupskiSubject: Re: vote.....a stoat?
Dear Jillian--
I'm thrilled by your letter.
I wrote "that book" (as people call it) throughout my twenties--and when it was acquired by Holt in 1970, I was a baby (and a babe). I had no idea what I'd wrought.
The reactions were ecstatic, mean, unprintable, hateful, horrid and wonderful. The "official" lit'ry types called me "a mammoth pudenda" (Paul Theroux in the New Statesman), but Henry Miller of Tropic of Cancer fame loved it and so did John Updike in the New Yorker. Thus my first novel (third book) was SAVED!
And here we are in 2008 & you have just found it at a time in your life you need it. The wonder of books!
So--read it and remember that men are compelling but another one always comes along (like a bus).
Remember who you are! Fantastic, individual, beautiful inside and out. If one creep doesn't get it, a wise man
will come along who does.
I've had 4 marriages and my 4th husband is my soulmate. We are now married 19 years--a record for us both.
The others were just warm-ups.
BE WELL!
EJ
Dear Jillian--
I'm thrilled by your letter.
I wrote "that book" (as people call it) throughout my twenties--and when it was acquired by Holt in 1970, I was a baby (and a babe). I had no idea what I'd wrought.
The reactions were ecstatic, mean, unprintable, hateful, horrid and wonderful. The "official" lit'ry types called me "a mammoth pudenda" (Paul Theroux in the New Statesman), but Henry Miller of Tropic of Cancer fame loved it and so did John Updike in the New Yorker. Thus my first novel (third book) was SAVED!
And here we are in 2008 & you have just found it at a time in your life you need it. The wonder of books!
So--read it and remember that men are compelling but another one always comes along (like a bus).
Remember who you are! Fantastic, individual, beautiful inside and out. If one creep doesn't get it, a wise man
will come along who does.
I've had 4 marriages and my 4th husband is my soulmate. We are now married 19 years--a record for us both.
The others were just warm-ups.
BE WELL!
EJ
So I guess the moral of the story is....I shouldn't plan on being happy in love until my fourth marraige!! We're just warming up!
Hi Jill -
ReplyDeleteThanks SO much for posting - this story is just a riot. I have never read Fear of Flying, but Jong is so funny I think I will have to check it out. I just finished reading The Sparrow, which Jesse read and wrote up (among previous posts) - I tought it was quite interesting, so will post some comments. Cheers! UB
Cute picture, but I'm pretty sure that's a ferret! (My favorite animal). I could be mistaken though
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