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<DIV style="font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A title=David.Duffy@qimr.edu.au
href="mailto:David.Duffy@qimr.edu.au">David Duffy</A> </DIV></DIV></DIV>
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style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #f5f5f5" size=2 face=Tahoma>> </FONT></STRONG>Adam
Robert's _Land of the Headless_ (2007) has his protagonist fall <BR></DIV>
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<DIV
style="FONT-STYLE: normal; DISPLAY: inline; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none">heavily
for _Siuzan Delage_. Some have thought it a nod to Proust, but <BR></DIV>
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<DIV
style="FONT-STYLE: normal; DISPLAY: inline; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none">the
plot I think is more a riff on Wolfe (among other things).</DIV></DIV>
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<DIV
style="FONT-STYLE: normal; DISPLAY: inline; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none">Roberts
has reviewed Wolfe extensively – I think it’s a safe bet that he *knows* Wolfe’s
_Suzanne Delage_, and that that will have informed his work. Whether it’s
likely to be a homage, exactly, I’m not so sure. Roberts’ review of _An
Evil Guest_ is scathing about Wolfe’s portrayal of women, although some of
Robert’s “Wolfe is rubbish at portraying women” may be entangled with “I don’t
like Wolfe’s politics on the subject of women”. </DIV></DIV>
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<DIV
style="FONT-STYLE: normal; DISPLAY: inline; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none">That
said, I don’t think it is likely to be any sort of direct assault either, simply
because a character who appears offstage in a short story isn’t much of a
jumping ground for any kind of assault. I wouldn’t be surprised, though,
if there is some implication that the idealisation of women is a form of
oppression. Pure speculation, though, as I haven’t read it.</DIV></DIV>
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<DIV
style="FONT-STYLE: normal; DISPLAY: inline; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none">[I’ve
read _On_ and _Salt_ by Roberts. _On_ was okay but a bit too consciously
postmodern and clever. I liked _Salt_ a lot, though.]</DIV></DIV>
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Gerry Quinn</DIV></DIV>
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