In "The Last Days of America" Paul Erdman's exposition is sloppy, careless and ungrammatical. No human voice could conceivably speak his dialogue. It could be composed only by someone immune to the rhythms of ordinary utterance. The hero is in the missile business. He indulges himself in large scale commercial bribery, engages in an episode of breaking and entering, kills a couple of people in passing, and, least forgivable of all, bores anyone who unwisely keeps track of his misadventures to the edge of coma.

Robert Lekachman, "Foreign Settings and Domestic Scenes," in The New York Times Book Review (© 1981 by The New York Times Company; reprinted by permission), August 30, 1981, p. 10.∗