Books, Arts & Manners: Father of Fun

Paradise News, by David Lodge (Viking, 293 pp., $21)

DAVID LODGE is one of those prolific English novelists who finally make the lucrative transatlantic leap with their six or seventh novel. With the appearance of Small World in 1984 the American reading public became Lodge-conscious. Once they pick up on an Englishman like Lodge, moreover, American readers tend to remain loyal. This is probably because English novelists of moderate talent are so dependable. We know exactly what to expect from them, whereas it’s anyone’s guess what Roth or Mailer or Styron—authors who reinvent themselves with each new book—is going to do next.

GJ

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George Sim Johnston

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Paradise News, by David Lodge (Viking, 293 pp., $21)

DAVID LODGE is one of those prolific English novelists who finally make the lucrative transatlantic leap with their six or seventh novel. With the appearance of Small World in 1984 the American reading public became Lodge-conscious. Once they pick up on an Englishman like Lodge, moreover, American readers tend to remain loyal. This is probably because English novelists of moderate talent are so dependable. We know exactly what to expect from them, whereas it’s anyone’s guess what Roth or Mailer or Styron—authors who reinvent themselves with each new book—is going to do next.