It’s not too often that distinguished and internationally renowned professors read popular women’s fiction - at least, not in my experience. It’s even more rare for such professors to offer endorsements for these kind of books.
Today, though, I am grinning from ear to ear because Lawrence Grossberg, Morris Davis Distinguished Professor of Communication Studies and Cultural Studies at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has read an advanced copy of Crossing Washington Square and offered the following words:
“Joanne Rendell admirably reveals the hypocrisy of an academic culture that claims to want to understand people and the world they live in, but refuses to take seriously the forms of culture that matter to them.”
Professor Grossberg’s work was hugely influential on my work back in my past academic life. His books were also a big influence on some of the themes of Crossing Washington Square (out this September, don’t forget!). Don’t worry, that’s not to say the new book is full of high-falutin academic talk and theories! But Prof. Grossberg and his peers in Cultural Studies did help me think about the importance of studying popular culture - from Pop Idol to romance novels - in smart and serious ways…and that’s what my feisty new character, Professor Rachel Grey, is all about!
Thank you, Professor Grossberg.
