The Man in the Gray Flannel Skirt

The Man in the Gray Flannel Skirt

A Memoir of Androgyny

Jon-Jon Goulian is a very complex man. He was blessed with a privileged and liberal upbringing - his father a doctor, his mother a lawyer and his grandfather the renowned philosopher Sidney Hook. For five years he worked as an assistant to Robert Silvers, the much-loved and redoubtable editor of The New York Review of Books. Mr Silvers describes Jon-Jon as, "one of the most brilliant people who ever worked at The New York Review". Jon-Jon has a law degree he has hardly used and then there's the skirt and nail polish wearing as well as the army of stuffed toys that go with him to work. Jon-Jon spent his late teens, twenties and thirties somewhat adrift - in and out of employment and generally confusing all those who met him. The Man in the Gray Flannel Skirt is a riveting account of a very intelligent man growing up left of centre, trying to work out who he is and where he fits, both personally and privately.

Jon-Jon Goulian grew up in the beach side village of La Jolla in California. The grandson of philosopher Sidney Hook, his law degree is from NYU. He has worked many different jobs throughout his life, but most notably as the assistant to Robert Silvers, editor of The New York Review of Books. His memoir details his attempts to find purpose and meaning in life. It is also an offering to his parents who never quite understood what was going on in his head and what his next move would be. He now lives in Vermont, where he spends most of his time gardening. The Man in the Gray Flannel Skirt title comes from the 1955 novel, The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, by Sloan Wilson. The Wilson book is about the American search for purpose in a world dominated by business.

The Man in the Gray Flannel Skirt
UWA Publishing
Author: Jon-Jon Goulian
ISBN: 9781742582900
Price: $34.95