Books: James Patterson: The Man Who Can't Miss

Patterson probably outsells Toni Morrison 10 books to 1, but his success comes at a price. He will never get respect from the literati. Most reviewers ignore him. In a culture that values high style over storytelling, pretty prose over popularity and pulse-pounding plots, he's at the extreme wrong end of the spectrum, and he knows it. And, yes, it irks him a little. "That's probably my biggest frustration," he admits. "There's something going on here that's significant, and it's not easy to do. If it was easy to do, a lot of people would do it."

It isn't easy, nor is it easy to put down, but it isn't quite art either. The fact is, Patterson is an affront to every Romantic myth of the artist we have. He's not tortured. He's not poor. He doesn't work alone, and he's way too unsentimental about his work. Of The 5th Horseman, he shrugs, saying, "I don't think it's terribly worth reading, honestly. I think it's fine for that kind of series." But maybe it's time to let go of a few Romantic myths. There's something to be said for good plotting, and for living in mansions instead of garrets, and for not taking yourself too seriously. Literature may not be a democracy, but it doesn't have to be bad business.