Tim Rutten on John Grisham, John Edwards and Post-Literate Fiction

When the LA Times moved Tim Rutten away from the Calendar section, he got visiting privileges. He’s reviewing the latest John Grisham novel, The Appeal, and notes:

People who keep track of such things report that Grisham was the bestselling author of the 1990s, when readers bought more than 60 million of his books.

People who keep track of such things include Rutten’s own paper. Book publishing isn’t exactly an esoteric pursuit.

Grisham’s books sell very well, which is a problem for Rutten:

In the world of popular fiction, those sorts of numbers not only put you beyond the reach of conventional criticism, but they also obscure any purpose but brute commerce.

Brute

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