| WORLD VOICES CONFESSIONS OF A DISSIDENT WRITER: A CAUTIONARY TALE
PART 2: BUSTED BY ROBERT GOVER |
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Robert Gover's first novel, One Hundred Dollar Misunderstanding, a satire on racism, became a surprise bestseller in 1962 after traveling a uniquely circuitous route. It was first roundly rejected by book publishers in the USA at a time when miscegenation was illegal in many states and taboo in all. It was then sent to France where it was accepted by La Table Ronde, which brought it out in translation to rave reviews. Its first English-language publication was by a British publisher, who sold American rights to Ballantine, who sublet hardback rights to Grove Press. Grove's edition rose up the New York Times Bestseller list during a printers' union strike that shut down newspapers citywide.
In Part 2 of his memoir, presented here as a Web Del Sol chapbook, Gover recalls how his subsequent novel,Poorboy at the Party, was bought for a record advance. After Publishers Weekly magazine featured the novel on its cover in September 1966—practically guaranteeing the number 1 spot on bestseller lists—Gover's editor disappeared and publication of Poorboy was sabotaged, apparently for ideological reasons.
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