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    • The Revolt of the Pendulum >
      • The Question of Karl Kraus
      • John Bayley's Daily Bread
      • Kingsley and the Women
      • Canetti Man of Mystery
      • Camille Paglia Burns for Poetry
      • The Guidebook Detectives
      • Zuckerman Uncorked
      • The Flight from the Destroyer
      • Saying Famous Things
      • Insult to the Language
      • The Perfectly Bad Sentence
      • Happiness Writes White
      • All Stalkers Kill
      • Best Eaten Cold
      • White Shorts of Leni Reifenstahl
      • Made in Britain, More or Less
      • Movie Criticism in America
      • Show Me the Horror
      • The Measure of A.D. Hope
      • Robert Hughes Remembers
      • Modern Australian Painting
      • On Diamond Jim McClelland
      • The Voice of John Anderson
      • Niki Lauda Wins Going Slowly
      • Damon Hill's Bravest Day
      • Jonathan James-Moore
      • Ian Adam
      • Pat Kavanagh
      • Starting with Sludge
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        • Holding Court
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        • The Emperor's Last Words
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Home>>Books>>The Revolt of the Pendulum

The Revolt of the Pendulum

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My seventh collection of miscellaneous essays, The Revolt of the Pendulum, came out from Picador in May 2009. Its constituent pieces were mainly written to meet commissions from various periodicals in the UK, the US and Australia after I published Cultural Amnesia in 2007, although some of them were written while that book was still in the works. Apart from the out-and-out cultural essays on such figures as Karl Kraus, Kingsley Amis, Camille Paglia, Philip Roth, A.D. Hope and Leni Riefenstahl, there are sheaves of much smaller pieces arising from my activities in show business and the web. One of two of the book's early critics took exception to these reports from my workshop, and managed to convince themselves that self-agrandisement was the book's main emphasis. I don't think  they were right, but I have included their reviews in the list of accompanying links, just in case they know better than I do.

29 of the 45 pieces in the book are reproduced here.


Contents

  • Introduction

  • The Question of Karl Kraus Australian Literary Review, March 2007
  • John Bayley's Daily Bread TLS, May 27 2005
  • Kingsley and the Women TLS, February 2 2007
  • Canetti, Man of Mystery New York Times, October 2 2005
  • ​Camille Paglia Burns for Poetry New York Times, March 27 2005
  • The Guidebook Detectives New Yorker, March 17 2003
  • Denis Healey's Classic Memoir Standpoint November 2008
  • Zuckerman Uncorked: Philip Roth's Exit Ghost New York Times, October 7 2007
 
  • The Flight from the Destroyer: a review of Artists in Exile by Joseph Horowitz TLS, July 9 2008
  • Saying Famous Things The Monthly, March 2007
  • Insult to the Language​ The Monthly, May 2006
  • The Perfectly Bad Sentence The Monthly, January 2008
  • Happiness Writes White The Monthly, December 2006 — January 2007
  • All Stalkers Kill Weekend Australian, April 15—16, 2006
  • In Praise of Tommy Cooper previously unpublished
  • A Microphone for the Audience previously unpublished
  • Best Eaten Cold Best Eaten ColdAustralian Literary Review, June 2007
  • The Velvet Shackles of a Reputation The Monthly, August 2007
  • Don't Hold Your Breath, Argentina previously unpublished
  • White Shorts of Leni RiefenstahlWhite Shorts of Leni Reifenstahl New York Times, March 25 2007
  • Made in Britiain, More or Less TLS September 28, 2007
  • Movie Criticism in America New York Times, June 4, 2006
  • Show Me the Horror The Monthly, December 2005 — January 2006

  • The Measure of  A.D. Hope TLS, May 19, 2006
  • Robert Hughes Remembers New York Review of Books, January 11, 2007
  • Modern Australian Painting delivered as a National Trust Lecture at the State Theatre in Sydney on June 27, 2006, and later published in a shortened version by the TLS, September 1, 2006
  • A Question for Diamond Jim​ The Monthly, November 2005
  • Exit John Howard The Australian, December 22, 2007
  • ABR 300 The Australian Book Review, commonly called the ABR, asked for messages from contributors to celebrate its 300th issue in April 2008. This was mine.
  •  The Voice of John Anderson The Monthly, July 2005
  • Be a Miles, Vagrant Time Out Sydney, September 10-16, 2006
 
  • Niki Lauda Wins Going Slowly The Monthly, April 2006
  • Damon Hill's Bravest DayDamon Hill's Bravest Day Sunday Times, March 18, 2007
 
  • Going on in Edinburgh Guardian, August 23,  2008
  • Gateway to Infinity The Times, May 16, 2008
  • Back on the Road programme note for a Song Show tour of Australia in 2004
  • Lure of the Lyrics Guardian, April 1, 2008
  • Five Favourites Guardian, April 1, 2008
 
  • Jonathan James-Moore Guardian, December 2, 2005
  • Ian Adam Guardian, June 4, 2007
  • Richard Drewett, Guardian, February 4, 2008
  • Alan Coren  Chocolate and Cuckoo Clocks: the Essential Alan Coren
  • Pat Kavanagh Guardian, October 21, 2008
  • Music in the Dark Time Out Sydney, September 10-16, 2008
  • Starting with Sludge TLS, December 16, 2005

Reviews

  • Quadrant
  • Spectator
  • Independent
  • Spectator Book Club
  • Guardian
  • Observer
  • Telegraph
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  • Home
    • Archive
  • Author
    • Profiles >
      • The Texture of Reality
  • Books
    • The Fire Of Joy
    • Unreliable Memoirs
    • Falling Towards England
    • May Week Was In June
    • North Face of Soho
    • The Blaze of Obscurity
    • Latest Readings
    • Cultural Amnesia
    • Play All
    • A Point Of View
    • Flying Visits
  • Essays
    • Visions Before Midnight
    • The Crystal Bucket
    • Glued To The Box
    • The Metropolitan Critic
    • At the Pillars of Hercules
    • As of This Writing
    • The Meaning of Recognition >
      • Introduction
      • Polanski and the Pianist
      • Fantasy in the West Wing
      • Pushkin's Deadly Gift
      • Great Sopranos of Our Time
      • A Memory Called Malouf
      • Bing Crosby's Hidden Art
      • Larkin Treads the Boards
      • The Iron Capital of Bruno Schulz
      • Criticism a la Frank Kermode
      • Fast Talking Dames
      • Rough Guides to Shakespeare
      • General Election Sequence 2001
      • Primo Levi and the Painted Veil
      • A Big Boutique of Australian Essays
      • Cyrano on the Scaffold
      • A Nightclub in Bali
      • Aldous Huxley Then and Now
      • A Man Called Peter Porter
      • Philip Roth's Alternative America
      • The Miraculous Vineyard of Australian Poetry
      • Save Us From Celebrity
    • The Revolt of the Pendulum >
      • The Question of Karl Kraus
      • John Bayley's Daily Bread
      • Kingsley and the Women
      • Canetti Man of Mystery
      • Camille Paglia Burns for Poetry
      • The Guidebook Detectives
      • Zuckerman Uncorked
      • The Flight from the Destroyer
      • Saying Famous Things
      • Insult to the Language
      • The Perfectly Bad Sentence
      • Happiness Writes White
      • All Stalkers Kill
      • Best Eaten Cold
      • White Shorts of Leni Reifenstahl
      • Made in Britain, More or Less
      • Movie Criticism in America
      • Show Me the Horror
      • The Measure of A.D. Hope
      • Robert Hughes Remembers
      • Modern Australian Painting
      • On Diamond Jim McClelland
      • The Voice of John Anderson
      • Niki Lauda Wins Going Slowly
      • Damon Hill's Bravest Day
      • Jonathan James-Moore
      • Ian Adam
      • Pat Kavanagh
      • Starting with Sludge
    • Guest Writers >
      • Zoe Williams
      • Russell Davies
      • Bryan Appleyard
      • Marina Hyde
      • Bruce Beresford
      • Michael Frayn
  • Poetry
    • Poetry Collections >
      • Injury Time
      • Sentenced to Life >
        • Japanese Maple
        • Sentenced to Life
        • Procedure for Disposal
        • Leçons des ténèbres
        • Driftwood Houses
        • Event Horizon
        • Neuland
        • Echo Point
        • Change of Domicile
        • Holding Court
        • Too Much Light
        • Nature Programme
        • My Latest Fever
        • Nina Kogan's Geometrical Heaven
        • The Emperor's Last Words
        • Winter Plums
      • Nefertiti in the Flak Tower >
        • Whitman and the Moth
        • The Falcon Growing Old
      • Angels over Elsinore
      • The Book of My Enemy >
        • Recent Verse
        • Verse Letters
      • Opal Sunset
      • Other Passports >
        • Recent Verse >
          • The Book of My Enemy has been Remaindered
        • Parodies etc.
        • Earlier Verse
        • Verse Diaries
      • Fan Mail >
        • To Russell Davies: a letter from Cardiff
        • To Martin Amis: a letter from Indianapolis
        • To Pete Atkin: a letter from Paris
        • To Prue Shaw: a letter from Cambridge
        • To Tom Stoppard: a letter from London
        • To Peter Porter: a letter to Sydney
    • Epic Poems >
      • The River in the Sky
      • Gate of Lilacs
      • The Divine Comedy >
        • Hell - Cantos 1-3
        • Purgatory - Cantos 1-3
        • Heaven - Cantos 1-3
      • Poem of the Year
    • Books About Poetry >
      • Somewhere Becoming Rain
      • Poetry Notebook >
        • Listening for the Flavour
        • Five Favourite Poetry Books
        • Velvet Shackles
        • Meeting MacNiece
        • The Donaghy Negotiation
    • Poetry Readings
    • Articles on Poetry
    • Back from The Web
    • Guest Poets >
      • Daniel Brown
      • Liane Strauss
      • Les Murray
      • Peter Porter
      • Alan Jenkins
      • Stephen Edgar
      • John Stammers
      • Simon Barraclough
      • Isobel Dixon
      • Christian Wiman
      • Olivia Cole
      • Judith Beveridge
      • Peter Goldsworthy
      • Kapka Kassabova
  • Lyrics
    • My life in lyrics
    • Selected Song Lyrics >
      • Dancing Master
      • Faded Mansion
      • Have You got a Biro I can Borrow?
      • I Have to Learn to Live Alone Again
      • Hill of Little Shoes
      • History & Geography
      • I See the Joker
      • Laughing Boy
      • My Brother's Keeper
      • National Steel
      • Nothing Left to Say
      • Sessionman's Blues
      • Song for Rita
      • Stranger in Town
      • Sunlight Gate
      • The Egoist
      • The Eye of the Universe
      • The Ice Cream Man
      • Femme Fatale
      • The Master of the Revels
      • Thirty-year Man
      • Winter Spring
  • Video
    • Talking in the Library >
      • Series One
      • Series Two
      • Series Three
      • Series Four
      • Series Five
    • Postcards
    • CJ on YouTube
  • Radio
    • A Point Of View
    • Book Talk