Book Review: From Bon Mots to Buzz Words ; the New Yorker, 75 This Year, Once Set the Gold Standard for Magazines. Now It's Brass That Counts. about Town by Ben Yagoda Duckworth, Pounds 20, 496pp; Nobrow by John Seabrook Methuen, Pounds 9.99, 221pp; Slab Rat by Ted Heller Abacus, Pounds 10.99, 330pp

Hawtree, Christopher, The Independent (London, England)

With a possible exception of the Church Commissioners, no commercial enterprise is so given to malice and feud as publishing. It thrives upon methods rooted in slander and hoodwink, which frequently broach a mania that, in more respectable trades, would not only be commercial suicide but bring their perpetrators a stint in the jail or asylum.

An editor, however, often finds that his folly has the headhunters in a frenzy. Sometimes, profligate muddle wins through. Heads turn in restaurants, egos are satisfied, and the scramble continues - all more entertaining than most company histories. Hunch has no rules.

The 500 pages of Ben Yagoda's About Town, his history …

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Publication information: Article title: Book Review: From Bon Mots to Buzz Words ; the New Yorker, 75 This Year, Once Set the Gold Standard for Magazines. Now It's Brass That Counts. about Town by Ben Yagoda Duckworth, Pounds 20, 496pp; Nobrow by John Seabrook Methuen, Pounds 9.99, 221pp; Slab Rat by Ted Heller Abacus, Pounds 10.99, 330pp. Contributors: Hawtree, Christopher - Author. Newspaper title: The Independent (London, England). Publication date: April 8, 2000. Page number: 11. © 2009 The Independent - London. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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