Norman Mailer's Daughter

The Chilean writer Roberto Bolano returned to Chile after an absence of 25 years, he had to leave after being arrested in Pinochet's coup, and he was at a party where, he says he was talking to another writer, of the minor variety, who, much to his astonishment told him that she was in psychoanalysis and her analyst was no other than the daughter of Norman Mailer. Why she should have been in Santiago at that time he had no idea, but he was even more astonished to learn that two of the others at the party were also undergoing analysis with her. |

" If we were in Mexico, it would make more sense: there's a tradition of outrageousness there that encompasses a sub-genre of bizarre visitors." says Bolano.

I rather like that sentence, and can just imagine Mexico being like that. If you've read The Savage Detectives you will know what he is on about. Think I must visit there some day soon.

But the idea of Mailer's daughter being there and doing therapy or whatever for these people is unreal. At the same time as Bolano was visiting Chile Pinochet himself was under arrest in London. But that's another story.  

Tomorrow I'm escaping the jubilee festivities here in Edinburgh, with a wee trip north to the land of my birth: Isle of Lewis for those of you who don't know. So looking forward to that, and who knows I might even write a post from there. Or even post a nostalgic pic or two.