The Elegant Variation: MOTEV ON THE BOOKER

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August 12, 2005

MOTEV ON THE BOOKER

Well, we could send you to additional Booker coverage at Telegraph or at the Independent or at the Irish Examiner or at the Financial Times or at the Scotsman or this John Sutherland interview (pick Wednesday; thanks Andie Miller!) but everyone else probably has those same links, and who needs those guys when we've got MOTEV, who shared her take on this year's round of nominations.

TEV: So, did you see the Booker long list was out?
MOTEV: Yes.
TEV: And what did you think of it?
MOTEV: (sniffs) All known names.
TEV: Is that good or bad?
MOTEV: (an unusually long pause, during which we imagine eyes to be narrowing) You're not MOTEVing me?
TEV: Of course not. How can I "MOTEV" you? MOTEV's not a verb.
MOTEV: Are you lying?
TEV: (pause) Maybe a little.
MOTEV: (weary sigh) I think it's not very good. It's somehow always the same people … and now I'm self-conscious because you're typing.
TEV: You’ve never been self conscious before.
MOTEV: I've never been used before. (sighs) This was my thought: it would be nice to see another name there for a change. And I have a problem with this Commonwealth thing or with English writers thing which brought to my mind that many of these writers are not English, so I don't know, what is the definition today of "English literature"? Is the language it's written in, is it geography where the writer lives? Where does it come from?
TEV: An excellent question and I have no idea. Colonies, it's all about colonies. What do you think about the Saturday nod?
MOTEV: I told you when I read it that I didn't dislike that book.
TEV: Have you read any of the others? The Ishiguro?
MOTEV: Which is that?
TEV: Never Let Me Go.
MOTEV: No. Which are the others?
TEV: If you read my site once in a while, you'd know.
MOTEV: I didn't read your site Why don't you email it to me?
TEV: Banville is on it. Coetzee is on it, Zadie Smith is on it.
MOTEV: With what?
TEV: On Beauty. It's not out yet
MOTEV: Then how can she be on it?
TEV: That's another excellent question. Obviously, they get early copies.
MOTEV: I don't think that's fair.
TEV: Welcome to my world. And Ali Smith – you liked Hotel World, didn't you?
MOTEV: Yes, I did, I really did. I think it was original, it grabbed me, it stayed with me.
TEV: So, it's early but do you want to handicap the winner yet?
MOTEV: I would need a little more time for that … and I don't know the works … how would I do that?
TEV: That doesn't stop most of the pundits.
MOTEV: I'm not like most of the pundits
TEV: Well I'll send you the list, and you can come back with your predictions.
MOTEV: OK.

(To be continued … )

Posted at 12:30 AM in MOTEV | Permalink

Comments

My first delight of the day. Yay MOTEV, and more, please.

(And I want that Zadie Smith book.)

Posted by: Justine | August 12, 2005 at 08:40 AM

You sneaky little MOTEVer, you. To your own mother you do this? Oy.

Posted by: Jimmy Beck | August 12, 2005 at 10:10 AM

Whenever I see MOTEV's face in that right-hand corner, I get a little charge of pleasure. It's downright Pavlovian.

Posted by: Karen | August 12, 2005 at 12:36 PM

Three cheers for MOTEV! I like her honesty and thoughtful questions. But, Mark, the jig is up. She's on to you and your MOTEVing--But I liked your response:)

But I do have to agree, it's often difficult to get a good sense of who really is the best candidate since many of the books do tend to be sent out to reviewers and the like--the general readership isn't privy to things that are being voted on and that makes the list a bit frustrating to read.

I look forward to more MOTEV.

Posted by: angela | August 12, 2005 at 01:42 PM

Long live MOTEV! EVERYTHING seems a little fishy these days.

Posted by: Valerie | August 12, 2005 at 01:42 PM

MOTEV needs her own blog. And I want the Zadie SMith book, too.

Posted by: Patry | August 12, 2005 at 03:32 PM

My first comment here! And how lucky that it's in response to such grand MOTEVery. I look forward to more. Yaay for Mom!

P.S. Ishiguro's new one is first on my list to read, followed by Z. Smith's.

Posted by: ae | August 12, 2005 at 04:06 PM

Perhaps I missed something. Has MOTEV any strong feelings on one J. Banville?
I lament that Jonathan Coe isn't on the list, but I'm also looking forward to Zadie Smith.

Posted by: Dave Worsley | August 13, 2005 at 05:44 PM

There is more than one brand new name on that list - Marina Lewycka for a start, and the author I am reading right now, Tash Aw. I can't quite see The Harmony Silk Factory going all the way, but for a first novel, it is pretty special.

Posted by: Barry | August 14, 2005 at 03:55 AM

Every day when I read this blog, I'm hoping it's a MOTEV day. I'm feeling good and lucky right now.

Posted by: smh | August 14, 2005 at 02:28 PM

Definately More Motev!!!

Posted by: MJ Rose | August 14, 2005 at 07:03 PM

The comments to this entry are closed.

MY NOVEL

HARRY, REVISED - Get all the details here.

TOUR DATES

WORTHY READINGS

TEV DEFINED

The Elegant Variation is "Fowler’s (1926, 1965) term for the inept writer’s overstrained efforts at freshness or vividness of expression. Prose guilty of elegant variation calls attention to itself and doesn’t permit its ideas to seem naturally clear. It typically seeks fancy new words for familiar things, and it scrambles for synonyms in order to avoid at all costs repeating a word, even though repetition might be the natural, normal thing to do: The audience had a certain bovine placidity, instead of The audience was as placid as cows. Elegant variation is often the rock, and a stereotype, a cliché, or a tired metaphor the hard place between which inexperienced or foolish writers come to grief. The familiar middle ground in treating these homely topics is almost always the safest. In untrained or unrestrained hands, a thesaurus can be dangerous."

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Diary of a Bad Year by J. M. Coetzee

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*Now in Paperback*

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The Elegant Variation

A Literary Weblog.
A Guardian Top 10 Literary Blog * A Forbes "Best of the Web" Pick * A Los Angeles Magazine Top Los Angeles Blog
"Really brave ... or really stupid" - NPR

August 12, 2005

MOTEV ON THE BOOKER

Comments

MY NOVEL

WORTHY READINGS

TEV DEFINED

RECOMMENDED

THIS GUN FOR HIRE:
Reviews & Criticism

SECOND LOOK

Categories

The Elegant Variation

A Literary Weblog. A Guardian Top 10 Literary Blog * A Forbes "Best of the Web" Pick * A Los Angeles Magazine Top Los Angeles Blog "Really brave ... or really stupid" - NPR

August 12, 2005

MOTEV ON THE BOOKER

Comments

MY NOVEL

WORTHY READINGS

TEV DEFINED

RECOMMENDED

THIS GUN FOR HIRE: Reviews & Criticism

SECOND LOOK

Categories

A Literary Weblog.
A Guardian Top 10 Literary Blog * A Forbes "Best of the Web" Pick * A Los Angeles Magazine Top Los Angeles Blog
"Really brave ... or really stupid" - NPR

THIS GUN FOR HIRE:
Reviews & Criticism