British author Martin Amis dies aged 73
21 May 2023 11:10am
(FILES)Photo shows acclaimed British writer Martin Amis at the Miramax Book Convention Dinner Party at the House Restaurant on in Los Angeles, California. Amis has died aged 73 at his home in Lake Worth, Florida, the New York Times and British media reported on May 20, 2023. Amis' wife Isabel Fonseca told media that the author of searing and insightful works such as "Money: A Suicide Note," "London Fields" and "Time's Arrow" passed away on May 19 after a bout with esophageal cancer. (Photo by Amanda Edwards / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)
The novelist and screenwriter published 14 novels, a memoir, two collections of stories and eight collections of non-fiction works over his lifetime.
According to German news agency (dpa), in a statement to the PA news agency, Vintage Books said: "We are devastated by the death of our author and friend, Martin Amis: novelist, essayist, memoirist, critic, stylist supreme.''
"It has been a profound privilege and pleasure to be his publisher; first as Jonathan Cape in 1973, with his explosive debut, The Rachel Papers; then as part of Penguin Random House and Vintage, up to and including his most recent book, 2020's Inside Story.''
He died from cancer of the oesophagus at his home in Florida, his agent Andrew Wylie told the AP news agency.
Born in Oxford in 1949, he was the son of the late Booker Prize-winning writer, Sir Kingsley Amis, who also died age 73 in 1995.
He was educated at schools in the UK, Spain and the US before later graduating from Exeter College in Oxford where he studied English.
In 1973, he published his first novel, ‘The Rachel Papers’, while working as an editorial assistant at the Times Literary Supplement.
In his work he explored current events and the contemporary world as well as key periods in history, notably the Holocaust, which he wrote about in novels such as ‘Time's Arrow’ and ‘The Zone Of Interest’.
‘Time's Arrow’ was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, while his 2003 novel ‘Yellow Dog’ was also longlisted.
The official Twitter account of the Booker Prize described him as "one of the most acclaimed and discussed novelists of the past 50 years” following the news.
"We are saddened to hear that Martin Amis, one of the most acclaimed and discussed novelists of the past 50 years, has died'', they tweeted.
Fellow authors and famous faces also paid tribute to Amis following the news, with broadcaster Richard Coles saying: "I don't think there's a better 80s novel than Money but I absolutely adored his essays.”
Former prime minister Boris Johnson tweeted that he was "shocked and sad” to hear of Amis's death, describing him as "the greatest, darkest, funniest satirist since Evelyn Waugh”.
"If you want cheering up, re-read the tennis match in Money. RIP”, he added. - BERNAMA-dpa
