News broke in the UK this morning that the writer of “Belle De Jour” had finally been outed by the press - it turns out she is/was Brooke Magnanti. I haven’t read the Sunday Times article (and probably won’t), but have read a little of the surrounding coverage by - how shall we put this - more balanced journalists.
I have a passing interest in the variously famous “A-List” bloggers being outed because I vaguely know Catherine Sanderson - author of Petite Anglaise. In the run-up to our adoption a couple of years ago she incredibly kindly offered us the use of her writing studio in Paris as a weekend getaway. I’ll never forget it, because it re-inforced something that is easy to forget… these are real people - just like you and me.
Of course now I’m wondering - having not read “Belle de Jour” - what it’s like. I’m trying to keep away from Amazon as I write this, and failing badly. One of the capsule reviews mentions her candid and sometimes hilarious insights into people on London Underground trains - I can certainly relate to that at least. It might have to join the growing list of controversial books I have read - along with Lolita, Tropic of Cancer, and many others.
If there’s one thing that really annoys me, it’s people who have opinions about things without having experienced them themselves. Books are perhaps the most common casualty. I remember people staring at me on the train while reading “The God Delusion”, but nobody making a second glance when I read “Thus Spake Zarathustra” (which has historically had far more impact than many other books).