John Edwards Only Did It So Jay McInerney Could Have His Career Back

[mallorys_camera]

Wow. This is kind of interesting: apparently novelist Jay McInerney wrote an entire book about John Edwards' mistress with the weird name. It's called Story of My Life.

Okay. I kind of did like Big City, Bright Lights (or was it Bright City, Big Lights?) even though it was entirely written in the oh-so-annoying second person singular. McInerney can string a sentence together. At times he reminds me of Scott Fitzgerald.

But a Scott Fitzgerald stuck in This Side of Paradise. Jay, Jay, Jay -- the guard changes. You are so fuckin' eighties.

Generally when writers discover they're no longer the cutting edge of youth, they turn into right-wing nutcases. McInerney was no exception.

Rielle Hunter -- and what kind of a fucking name is that? You'd think that any sane man at a party hearing, "My name's Rielle" -- pronounced, I imagine, "real" -- would run, run, run for the nearest exit sign.

I have no problem with the affair. I have something of a problem with his coy insistence that Elizabeth was in remission when it happened. What's implied by that?

If I had given money to Edwards, I'd certainly have a problem with the affair since Rielle Hunter's sinecure was subsidized -- at least at first -- by campaign contributions. At the very least I think Edwards should be forced to return those campaign contributions.

As to the rest of it... Wow, his friends love Edwards so much they acquire a 3.3 million dollar house for his erstwhile mistress? How can I get me some friends like that?

Comments

[cake-o-rama.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I just...yeah.

Reading Story of My Life was when I knew I was a writer.

[mallorys-camera.livejournal.com]

How so?

[cake-o-rama.livejournal.com]

I was trying to give this a careful response because it was a big enlightenment at the time and even considered making a post of my answer, basically, just reading that particular book, in my own partyedoutedness, I thought, "Oh silly, even *I* could do this."

I haven't. But I still think I could.

[lacachet.livejournal.com]

My newspaper claims the her name is pronounced "Riley", but I have yet to hear anyone actually say it that way.

[mallorys-camera.livejournal.com]

"Deb" is pronounced "Riley" too, isn't it? I know "Patrizia" is!

[lacachet.livejournal.com]

*Laugh* Be nice :)

[bluemamie.livejournal.com]

I read Story Of My Life and if that's a fair depiction of her then she is a little nutty.

Oh-and her name is pronounced "Riley" She must be special like that.

[mallorys-camera.livejournal.com]

McInerney's always struck me as the consumate narcissist -- I'm not sure he's capable of accurate portraiture.

But yes, she's nutty. Because she pronounces her name "Riley."

[bluemamie.livejournal.com]

I agree about McInerney, which is why I'm not sure how fair the depiction is.

I am also incredulous to any discussion of how this might be anyone's fault but John Edwards, and still-she seems nutty.

The media seems pretty intent on pronouncing her name "Ree-elle" which seems like a sensible response to me.