privilege and reading

[JBFRAME at aol.com]

Speaking as a working-class non-hero autodictat with only a smattering of 
college, I must chime in with rueful agreement about the (for lack of a 
better term) elitist market for serious writing.  For better or worse, the 
Dickens of our time appears to be the likes of Stephen King.  I remember 
Norman Mailer's ambitious, failed attempt to create pop literature with guts 
in his Esquire serialization of An American Dream.  Although a good friend of 
mine at the time raved about it.  But I digress.  
I think there are enough of us who appreciate interesting & challenging works 
of literature.  This list & others like it are evidence enough for me, 
certainly.

jbf