Bestselling author Anthony Horowitz has lashed out at book firms ‘tampering’ with the work of dead writers, and accused Roald Dahl‘s publishers of having ‘shot themselves in the foot’ after censoring his works.
Horowitz, who penned the Alex Rider series aimed at under-15s, said he was against publishers making changes amid an ongoing row over reader sensitivity blighting the literary industry.
In recent months, publishers have edited out words deemed offensive in books by late authors Dahl, Agatha Christie and James Bond creator Ian Fleming.
The practice has been slammed by a number of top writers, with Sir Philip Pullman demanding publishers let books ‘go out of print’ rather than editing them. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak even waded into the debate, criticising the changes.
Horowitz, who previously said he was ‘very scared’ of ‘cancel culture’ after being forced to rewrite swathes of one of his latest books, said it is better for children to read ‘offensive’ books than none at all.
Anthony Horowitz (pictured) has slammed publishers for censoring the works of dead authors in an ongoing row over reader sensitivities
Roald Dahl’s beloved children’s classic The Twits has been censored by publisher Puffin, with phrases like ‘ugly and beastly’ changed to just ‘beastly’. Other alteration’s in Dahl’s work have seen ‘fat’ removed to describe characters in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Crime author Agatha Christie (pictured) has also seen several passages in Poirot and Miss Marple mysteries reportedly being reworked or stripped altogether from new editions of the books by publisher HarperCollins
Appearing at Oxford Literary Festival, the 67-year-old author slammed alterations to Dahl’s books by publisher Puffin, which have seen the removal of ‘fat’ and ‘ugly’ to describe characters – with ‘ugly and beastly’ in Mrs Twit changed to just ‘beastly’.
‘They really shot themselves in the foot with their attempts to bowdlerise it,’ he told festival-goers, reported The Times.
‘I’m basically opposed to tampering with the work of dead writers. They can’t defend themselves.
‘It seems to me that you should take the work, judge it and be aware of why we no longer share these opinions, or this view of the world. Rather than censor, cut and take out stuff.’
The author added that 25 per cent of schools in Britain did not have a library and that because of this, it was vital youngsters read something – even if, as with certain Dahl books – some phrases might be deemed offensive.
The comments come after it was revealed over the weekend that several of the passages in Agatha Christie’s Poirot and Miss Marple mysteries had reportedly been reworked or stripped altogether from new editions of the books.
Publisher HarperCollins eliminated text containing ‘insults or references to ethnicity’, as well as descriptions of certain characters’ physiques, The Telegraph reported.
New editions of Ms Christie’s novels, reviewed by the newspaper, showed that editors have made ‘scores of changes’ to her books.
Agatha Christie’s novels are the latest works to be rewritten to eliminate verbiage that has been deemed insensitive or inappropriate, it has emerged. Ms Christie is pictured in 1950
Several of the passages in the author’s Poirot and Miss Marple mysteries have reportedly been reworked or stripped altogether from new editions of the books. Pictured: David Suchet as Hercule Poirot and Toby Jones as Samuel Ratchett in Murder on the Orient Express
The novels, written between 1920 and 1976, were stripped of sections of ‘unsympathetic’ dialogue, apparent insults and character descriptions.
For example, the word ‘Oriental’ has been removed from her 1937 mystery Death on the Nile, which follows sleuth Hercule Poirot as he investigates a murder on a luxury cruise.
The publisher changed dialogue of character of Mrs Allerton, who was complaining about pestering children.
The original text said: ‘They come back and stare, and stare, and their eyes are simply disgusting, and so are their noses, and I don’t believe I really like children.’
The rewritten version reportedly reads: ‘They come back and stare, and stare. And I don’t believe I really like children.’
References to Egypt’s Nubian people have also been removed, meaning phrasing like ‘the Nubian boatman’ now simply reads ‘the boatman.’
In one Miss Marple novel, text has been changed from ‘his Indian temper’ to just ‘his temper’ when describing an Indian judge character who undergoes a fit of rage. Pictured: Joan Hickson as Miss Marple
‘References to Egypt’s Nubian people have also been from Death on the Nile, meaning phrasing like ‘the Nubian boatman’ now simply reads ‘the boatman’. Pictured: A scene from the 2020 film adaptation of Death on the Nile
The publisher also eliminated the n-word from character dialogue and Ms Christie’s prose. Pictured: Agatha Christie circa 1965
Mr Horowitz previously said a ‘culture of fear’ is limiting literary expression and admitted he had been left ‘shocked’ when he was told what he could not write in one of his latest children’s books.
He admitted to being concerned about writing characters from different backgrounds to his, and about the potential backlash that may come with it.
Speaking at the Hay Festival, he said: ‘I’m very, very scared by what you’re calling cancel culture.
‘I think what is happening to writers is extremely dangerous, where certain words are hidden, where certain thoughts are not allowed anymore, where certain activities [are not allowed], obviously to do with gender or to with ethnicity or to do with trying to share the experiences of others.’
He told the crowd at Hay that he had ‘suffered’ while writing his latest children’s book called Where Seagulls Dare: A Diamond Brothers Case, which is due to be released next month.
The book, about ‘the world’s worst detectives’ is aimed at eight to 12-year-olds. Speaking last year, he said an extensive rewrite had been required, but declined to say what the changes were.
Mr Horowitz said he had ‘suffered’ while writing his latest children’s book called Where Seagulls Dare: A Diamond Brothers Case
‘I have just suffered from my last book notes from my publisher which absolutely shocked me about things which I could or couldn’t say, which is a children’s book, not an adult book,’ he said.
‘Children’s book publishers are more scared than anybody. And it seems to me that the forces that are now active in the world — everything to do with the divisiveness of what we’ve been through, plus the sort of stark contrast thrown up by social media whereby something is either very good or very bad but there’s nothing in between — this is leading to a culture of fear and that is the bigger problem.
‘It’s not about cancellation, it’s not about anger, it is about the fear that all creative people must now feel if they’re going to dare to write.
‘I believe that writers should not be cowed, we should not be made to do things because we’re so scared of starting a storm on Twitter.
‘Because once you start with the writers entering that tunnel, the whole of society will follow them in and we’re all going to be left nudging each other in the dark, too afraid to search for the light. That is sort of where we’re heading.’
