Source: Dailymail >> Read full article and comment
Becoming a grandfather is ‘so uncool’ moans enfant terrible of British Literature Martin Amis.
By IAN DRURY
Last updated at 7:42 AM on 7th June 2010
He triggered outrage by suggesting euthanasia booths be set up for pensioners to end their lives with ‘a martini and a medal’.
But that hasn’t stopped Martin Amis from obsessing about death and old age –particularly his own.
The novelist told an audience of fans at the Hay on Wye Literary and Arts Festival that his becoming a grandfather was like ‘getting a telegram from the mortuary’.
He also blamed ‘modern medicine’ for keeping ageing writers alive to continue to write even though their talent had deserted them.
‘At 45 you accept mortality,’ he said. ‘At 55 you think “Death is intrigued by me.” At 60, where I am now, you think “This is not going to turn out well!”’
As the enfant terrible of British literature Amis enjoyed a reputation as a hellraising philanderer. But being a grandfather, he complained, is ‘so uncool’.
The author – who has had a string of high-profile public rows including with ex-friend and fellow novelist Julian Barnes – became a grandfather in 2008…Continue reading
