[Ads-l] Quip: The New York Review of Each Other=?UTF-8?Q?=E2=80=99s_?=Books

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

James Eric Lawson kindly sent to me off-list several excellent
citations beginning in 1929 concerning literary logrolling using
phrases such as: "writing reviews of each other's books". This
material was germane to this QI article:

The New York Review of Each Other’s Books
https://quoteinvestigator.com/2021/01/24/review/

Inspired, I conducted some further searches and added some
thematically pertinent citations from the 1800s containing forms of
the precursor phrase: "review each other's books".

April 20, 1838, Morning Advertiser ("others'" should be "other's")
[Begin excerpt]
Authors sometimes review their own books, and sometimes they review
each others’ books.
. . .
“these two former gentlemen actually reviewed each other’s works.”
[End excerpt]

April 9, 1866, The Edinburgh Evening Courant,
[Begin excerpt]
. . . little knot of mediocrities and parasites—all writing books
themselves and reviewing each other's books . . .
[End excerpt]

January 25, 1890, The Wakefield Free Press,
[Begin excerpt]
His days have been passed far away from the busy haunts of men, and
outside mutual admiration circles, the members of which review each
other's books.
[End excerpt]

The 1929 citation uncovered by James appeared in the novel "Clash" by
Ellen Wilkinson who was a Member of the U.K. Parliament. A book
reviewer reprinted a passage from the work lambasting an influential
coterie:

1929 April 20, 1929, The Leeds Mercury
[Begin excerpt]
. . . exclusive Bloomsbury circle who bestowed fame on themselves by
writing reviews of each other’s books. As each slender work appeared
it was greeted as a new Tchehov, a more sensitive Dostoievsky, a
respringing of the fountain of Shelley’s genius. Most people read the
reviews and not the books, and as all they wanted was to be told which
was the book of the hour the circle was accepted as the last word in
literary genius.
[End excerpt]

Garson

On Mon, Jan 25, 2021 at 3:05 PM ADSGarson O'Toole
<adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> The Quote Investigator article has now been updated. I added citations
> for "The Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson" (1969) and "Intellectual
> Skywriting" (1974).
>
> https://quoteinvestigator.com/2021/01/24/review/
>
> [Begin acknowledgement excerpt]
> Many thanks to James Eric Lawson who located some valuable citations
> including the 1969 Goldman cite and the 1974 cite that suggested
> Richard Hofstadter was the coiner of this phrase.
> [Begin acknowledgement excerpt]
>
> For technical reasons it may take some time until the update is
> publicly visible.
> Garson
>
> On Sun, Jan 24, 2021 at 4:22 PM James Eric Lawson <jel at nventure.com> wrote:
> >
> > Two more early citations for your collection:
> >
> > (1969) The tragedy of Lyndon Johnson, p 444
> > Goldman, Eric Frederick
> > https://archive.org/details/tragedyoflyndonj00gold/page/444/mode/2up
> >
> > '("The New York Review of Each Other's Books" was the current quip.)'
> >
> > In context, and considered in conjunction with Nobile's 1974 history of
> > the publication in Intellectual Skywriting,
> > https://archive.org/details/intellectualskyw0000nobi/page/28/mode/2up?q=%22new+york+review+of+each%22
> > the mention suggests the Review's incestuous moniker emerged early, at
> > least pre-1965, probably no later than 1963.
> >
> > (1970) 1968: a short novel, an urban idyll, five stories, and two trade
> > notes, p 54
> > Stern, Richard G.
> > https://archive.org/details/1968shortnovelu00ster/page/54/mode/2up
> >
> > "...and The New York Review of (Each Other's) Books, XI, 2"
> >
> > The "short novel" was, if the book title is accurate, composed in 1968,
> > but of course there was plenty of time for post hoc editing before the
> > 1970 publication.
> >
> > On 1/24/21 9:00 AM, ADSGarson O'Toole wrote:
> > > I received an anonymous request to explore the provenance of the
> > > expression in the subject line. Barry Popik previously examined this
> > > topic and found citations beginning on December 29, 1969:
> > >
> > > https://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/new_york_review_of_each_others_books
> > >
> > > Barry stated in his 2005 posting, "It is not known who coined the nickname".
> > >
> > > Here is a link to the Quote Investigator article:
> > > https://quoteinvestigator.com/2021/01/24/review/
> > >
> > > I concluded that Alan Levy was the leading candidate for creator of
> > > the quip based on the following 1968 citation.
> > >
> > > [ref] 1968, The Culture Vultures; Or, Whatever Became of the Emperor's
> > > New Clothes? by Alan Levy, Part 2: The Careerists, Chapter 5:
> > > Corruption of the Instinct: The Critics, Quote Page 184, G. P.
> > > Putnam's Sons, New York. (Verified with scans) [/ref]
> > >
> > > [Begin excerpt]
> > > The frighteningly articulate house organ of a self-promoting Manhattan
> > > coterie, it could easily be renamed the New York Review of Each
> > > Other's Books. And like many people who have chosen to dwell
> > > intimately with the printed word, the New York Review clique maintains
> > > a love-hate relationship with the art it serves.
> > > [End excerpt]
> > >
> > > Feedback welcome
> > > Garson O'Toole
> > >
> > > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> > >
> >
> > --
> > James Eric Lawson
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org