The receptionist: an education at the New Yorker - Groth, Janet
Summary: Describes the author's career as a receptionist at the prestigious New Yorker magazine, recounting her relationships with famous poets, essayists, and playwrights, and chronicling the behind-the-scenes affairs of the magazine and its staff.
Booklist Reviews
Fresh out of college in 1957, Groth managed to get an interview at the New Yorker with a painfully shy E. B. White. She dreamed of being a famous writer but was offered the job of receptionist on the writers' floor of the magazine. Seeing that as a starting point, she began the job of tending to the work details of writers like John Berryman, Joe Mitchell, Calvin Trillin, Charles Addams, and Muriel Spark, to name a few. She never did become one of the writers there but never felt trapped. She had many experiences, good and bad, including Christmas in Tuscany with Muriel Spark. During her time there, she worked on her PhD; and, after 21 years, she left to take a professorship at the University of Cincinnati. She candidly relates her sexual awakening and foolish love choices as well as giving the reader a glimpse into the private lives of some of the writers who passed by her desk. She is witty, honest, and self-deprecating, without whining, and quite a good role model. Copyright 2012 Booklist Reviews.
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