The editor of a new, best-selling biography, Philip Roth, has temporarily stopped delivering and promoting the book because its author, Blake Bailey, faces multiple allegations of sexual harassment and abuse by women who were once his high school students.
“These allegations are serious. In light of this, we have decided to discontinue the delivery and promotion of Philip Roth: Biography pending any additional information that may appear, “US publisher Bailey WW Norton said in a statement to the Associated Press on Wednesday. Its UK publisher, Penguin Random House, has been contacted for comment.
Bailey was a teacher at Lusher Middle School in New Orleans in the 1990s. Many former students recently complained about Bailey’s inappropriate and manipulative behavior while he was their teacher, claiming that he “took care” of them, and then continued to have sex with them shortly after graduation. A former student, Eve Crawford Peyton, also accused him of raping her when she was 22, in an interview with Times Picayune / New Orleans Advocate.
In a letter quoted by the LA Times, Peyton wrote: “These stories have been whispered for decades or shared over a glass of wine by former students, who all thought they were alone. His behavior was an open secret and he followed a pattern and was textbook care, but no one ever said anything … To be fair, he never did anything then, not in the eighth grade. But he laid the groundwork. With dirty jokes, cunning comments, hugs that lasted a little too long, encouraging us to share our personal lives once we moved to high school (“Write to me about the latest slap and tickle”). ”
Bailey, whose works include biographies of John Cheever, Richard Yates and Charles Jackson, denied any wrongdoing. In response to allegations made by four former students, including Peyton, his lawyer told the Times Picayune / New Orleans Advocate: more than 20 years ago … It is absurd to suggest that he cared for students for early meetings as adults many years later. The allegations in your email address are false and harmful descriptions of adult behavior. Mr. Bailey never treated a woman inappropriately and never forced a woman. “
A Lusher spokesman confirmed that Bailey had not been the subject of any complaints of misconduct while teaching at school for about nine years since 1992.
On Tuesday, it was revealed that Bailey had been abandoned by his literary agency, the Story Factory. The agency told the LA Times that it ended the relationship “as soon as I learned of the disturbing allegations.”
Bailey’s book, released in early April, has been among the most anticipated literary biographies in recent years and has appeared on bestseller lists. Much of the review’s coverage focused on, in Bailey’s words, “Roth’s astonishing lack of taste for women.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.