The high achiever life-style Tom Smith

I'm not sure David Brooks is right that no novel has addressed the trade-offs of the high achiever life style.  I think Tom Wolfe does sometimes.  But anyway, Master Brooks makes a good point.

Comments

[Gregory Koster]

Dear Mr. Smith: I'd nominate John Marquand as a novelist who did this, on a high level, particularly in SINCERELY, WILLIS WAYDE. Trouble is, a) he died in 1960 and b) in his life and thereafter the reflexive, "He wrote for the SATURDAY EVENING POST and made a lot of money writing bestsellers, so he's no good," response of liberal bigotry passing as criticism put him in his place. Well, a) the portrait of Willis Wayde as corporate raider, looting and gutting firms still resonates today and b) complaining about liberal bigotry is on a par with observing the sun is rising in the east.

More puzzling is Brooks's continued transformation into a remora, with the distinction of silliness to be sure. Sotomayor as high achiever? What does Brooks think, say, Richard Posner or Alex Kozinski are? Equating SS to these two is like equating Jimmy Carter's deficits, smugness and wrongness about everything wit that of The One. This is more Brooksian sucking up to The One, to maintain his place in the lifeboat on the sinking ship. What'll be fun is watching Sotomayor slapping an injunction on Brooks twenty years from now when both their memoirs are to be published, and both want to title them ON THE MAKE: THE RISE AND RISE AND RISE AND RISE AND RISE AND RISE AND RISE AND RISE OF A HIGH ACHIEVER. No room for more than one high achiever in the Sotomayoran Hell as Brooks will learn to his sorrow.

Sincerely yours,
Gregory Koster

[Alan Gunn]

I second the Marquand suggestion, though my favorite of his is "Point of No Return." Wonderful book.

[Tom Smith]

Gregory and Alan: thanks for the suggestions. I have never heard of Marquand, but I am always on the make for a good novel. "Remora" is very good (as in true). I shall have to steal that sometime.