Deep Down, It’s All About Writing — Martha McPhee’s Excellent Adventure
Stuart Mitchner
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Martha McPhee’s new novel is not what it appears to be.
According to the jacket copy, Dear Money (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt $25) is a “Pygmalion tale of a novelist turned bond trader …. a raucous ride to the top of the income chain.” True enough, except that when a real-life bond trader came along and “propositioned” Martha McPhee in 2004 (“If you give me 18 months, I’ll turn you into a star trader.”), she behaved like a real-life writer. She saw a story in that proposition, explored the idea, researched it, and wrote a book that in its most inspired and accomplished pages has more to do with the joy of making literary art than it does with the art of making money….
Click here to read full review of Dear Money and to understand what Cindy Sherman has to do with it.
MARTHA McPHEE 