‘The English’ wants to critique the blood-soaked Old West. Instead, it revels in it.’
There were no more tears.
There can be no doubt that the ‘The English’ (not to be confused with one half of the group) were pleased with the book. The most positive reviews came from the _New York Times_ and the London _Times_. It was hailed in _New York Magazine_, where Peter Davison was hailed as a writer ‘on the vanguard of a new realism’.
Awards followed: _The New York Times_ ‘Best Book of the Year’, _The Washington Post_ ‘Book of the Year’, _The New Republic_ ‘Best Book of the Year’, The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the _Los Angeles Times_ ‘Outstanding Achievement’ for fiction.
Pamela, meanwhile, had been taken to the hospital for check-ups, and when she returned home she discovered that the two of them had moved in together. It was an arrangement that was made for a brief period of time, but after a while, the pressure that Pamela put on her mother was too much. They had to separate, and Pamela was given a small apartment in West Hollywood. She soon discovered that her ‘fledgling career as a professional actress was over.’
Pamela was in despair. She moved back to New York and to the studio, where she took work as an extra. Then on 24 April 1979, she wrote to Clive Barnes:
I would be much happier if we could have an open marriage but the cost is prohibitive. I’m a working actress and I have no family except my children. The marriage would ruin my career. They would all call me by my married name. They wouldn’t call anyone by theirs. I’m just as much a writer as you are. I couldn’t do it if I didn’t love them and they loved me. But I would rather write the book that will make a career for me.
On 25 April, she typed out a message to her father which she wanted to send:
I am very sorry for leaving you. I know how much you loved me.