I found reading John Leonard a little like eating chocolate cake. A little is great, a lot is too much. Partly because of Leonard’s almost beatnik writing style, partly because Leonard’s sentences meandered all over the place, and finally because no one else wrote like him, I grew to be a fan of John Leonard. I believe the New York Times Book Review was at its best when Leonard was the Editor. When the New York Times ran a column in the Arts & Leasure section written by “Deep Eyes” (a variation of “Deep Throat”) I knew immediately it was John Leonard. For 16 years, Leonard appeared on CBS SUNDY MORNING with movie reviews and social commentary. Reading For My Life collects a sampling of Leonard’s work: essays, book reviews, film reviews, thought pieces, and political analysis. Just reading Leonard’s scintillating prose again brought back how much I miss him. John Leonard was one-of-a-kind. GRADE: A
I’ve tried to read some of his collected essays in the past and could not get into them. You’re not joking when you write about how his sentences meander all over the place. While I believe that reading should be a thoughtful process and having to re-read a section to extract its full meaning is no crime, when it becomes a chore to make it through a single paragraph, include me out.
John Leonard’s style could be “too much of a good thing,” Deb. It was flashy and showy and called attention to itself. And, you’re right: it could be exhausting to read.
Good analysis of Leonard’s style. We also watched him on CBS Sunday Morning and always noted his elliptical style. Wasn’t he the one who put Ross Macdonald on the front page of the NYT Book Review?
Yes, Jeff. John Leonard put a review of Ross Macdonald on the front page of the New York Times Book Review when mysteries were still considered a lesser catagory of fiction. Leonard made the NYTBR the most interesting section in the New York Times in those days.
So you don’t think mysteries are STILL considered a lesser category of fiction?
Today it seems that everything about today’s publishing industry is about money, Rick. If mysteries are best sellers, then they get respect by the publishers. The same for science fiction. It seems that “literature” is only published now by small presses and university presses.