Asked repeatedly if she was excited about the award, she held court from her doorstep and noted she had been in the running for the Nobel for decades."I can't say I'm overwhelmed with surprise," Lessing said. "I'm 88 years old and they can't give the Nobel to someone who's dead, so I think they were probably thinking they'd probably better give it to me now before I've popped off."
[...]
"I've won all the prizes in Europe, every bloody one, so I'm delighted to win them all, the whole lot, OK?" Lessing said, making her way through the crowd. "It's a royal flush."
[...]
Although she is widely celebrated for "The Golden Notebook" and other works, she has received little attention in recent years and has been criticized as strident and eccentric.
But feted. And $1.5 million richer."
"I'm already thinking about all the people who are going to send me begging letters — I can see them lining up now," she said.
Well, I’m sure she’s right about that.
Lessing brightened when a reporter asked whether the Nobel would generate interest in her work."I'm very pleased if I get some new readers," she said. "Yes, that's very nice, I hadn't thought of that.”
Not one to look on the bright side, and all.
Her next book will be about her parents and the effects of war."
The second part of what she said would be a "passionately anti-war" book would chronicle the full effect of the conflict on her parents' lives."I don't know how it will do. I just sent it to my agent, who said the last 200 pages are unbearably painful," she said. "Good! Let it be unbearably painful so people know what wars can really be like."
Indeed.
And if your local PBS station has been running Ken Burns’ “The War” and you haven’t been watching, do. And read this Newsweek article about it as well. I think you’ll find it interesting.
....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.
Doris Lessing is one of my favorite authors. Her Shikasta series is fantastic.
ReplyDeleteAre there really only 5 of us readers? I suddenly feel very honored. Thanks for blogging/sharing your perspective with us.
clarity: i guess there are six of you!
ReplyDeletethank you for checking in. unless a reader leaves a comment, i never know who's out there aside from a handful of friends and relations, a couple of unidentified readers who show up on the traffic meter regularly, and some others who happen to drop in from being sent by search engines and the occasional link from another source.
thanks so much for your very, very kind comments. and you are very welcome to my perspective - it's pretty much all i've got to give. the honor is mine to have people willing to consider it.
thank you for reading YWA, and thank you for being.
many blessings,
m
p.s. i have to admit to never having read anything by doris lessing, and i am going to rectify that.