Sir, – Colm Tóibín’s latest book, reviewed by Carlo Gébler (Weekend Review, February 18th) has a misleading and somewhat offensive title: New Ways to Kill Your Mother.
It may be a catchy title for a book (“new” anything is a common publishers’ marketing ploy), but is in my opinion inappropriate for a series of essays about the relationships of great writers with their families. And with the exception of Jane Austen, Tóibín writes only about male writers. This is one sure way to kill off women writers – ignore them!
I’m sure the reviewer’s mother, Edna O’Brien, would agree – we must find ways of keeping our literary mothers and our women authors alive. – Yours, etc,