20 MAY 1972, page 15

E Rary Maverick

Richardson %t e 'Icbard Poirier (Fontana Modern rs 40 13) kkh,"riters have found themselves as v ely entertaining as does Mailer li 1, °°/°rie sense he might have called all u(s......

Bookendl._.....;;.4=3

Are publishing editors a dying breed? In an article in last week's New Statesman, Giles Gordon suggested that their function may increasingly be taken over by the literary agent......