Cleo II

[Christopher Brayshaw]

At the risk of coming across like an overpedantic twit, here's my case 
for AMAZONS as a collaborative novel:

1.  Tom LeClair's "Don DeLillo: In The Loop" (U.Illinois P. 1987) lists 
it as collaborative in an appendix, the most useful DeLillo bibliography 
I've found to date.

2. LeClair quotes DeLillo as saying the novel was written with a second 
party who prefers to remain anonymous (p.220).

My preferred candidate for this anonymous 2nd party is Gordon Lish, 
DeLillo's longtime editor at ESQUIRE.

My rationale for arguing what may seem to be a very picky point goes a 
bit like this: Lish's fiction is great fun (in particular, the 
oft-neglected DEAR MR. CAPOTE) & well-worth the interest of everybody on 
the list.  & the faked "author photograph" on the back jacket of AMAZONS 
is well worth the price of admission.  Though, quite honestly, AMAZONS is 
neither DeLillo's or (Lish)'s best work.  

But still...

Best,
Chris Brayshaw