Henry S. Taylor, winner of the 1986
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, wrote in 1992: It has been twenty-five years since David R. Slavitt invented Henry Sutton and embarked on a series of schlock novels under that pseudonym, but it is still fun to recall people's outrage when they learned that
The Exhibitionist was the work of someone who had also written more serious fiction, and even poetry. On one hand, people of
Jacqueline Susann's ilk were irritated because someone had done easily and laughingly what they worked hard to do; on the other hand, purveyors of solemn literature were offended at the success of this prostitution of talent. Even
Tom Wolfe, who had no reason to feel either envious or superior, took a cheap shot at Slavitt's next serious novel, saying in a review that it was not as good as
The Exhibitionist.
The Cliff (1994), Slavitt's novel about an impostor (one John Smith pretending to be another, more revered professor of the same name) at a literary retreat in Italy, received praise from many quarters.
Publishers Weekly's reviewer wrote, "Smith's witty and playful narration entertains despite some conveniences in the plot. It is his attempt to retain a sense of basic human dignity, however - his desire to prove that he is not 'an altogether worthless person' - that lies at the heart of the novel and invests it with meaning and resonance." Georgia Jones-Davis, writing for the
Los Angeles Times, speculated that "Slavitt is not so much telling a story as using his narrative to spoof everything he's probably come across in his distinguished and, let's face it, long academic career." She added, "There are some wondrously funny moments. Our brilliant, moody, schlemiel of a narrator, a guy who can't even make his rent, is highly critical of the food served at this historic villa. ... The narrator's sincere attempts to reconcile with his alienated daughter are touching and not at all sentimental. The highlight of the book must be the narrator's scathing letter to the manager about the villa's terrible service and dismissive treatment of its guests."
Magill Book Reviews wrote, "Slavitt's fiftieth book offers a satiric look at the cosseted world of creative and scholarly retreats, their beneficiaries, staffs, and administrators, as well as creative and academic life more generally." His two science fiction novels were well-received.
Vector, a 1970
public health thriller about the accidental spillage of a
nerve gas causing
viral encephalitis and wiping out a small
Utah town, was called "an efficient, energetic novel tracking a common concern."
The Outer Mongolian (1973) is an
alternate history novel about a genius child with
Down syndrome, who manipulates 1970s politics so that
Richard M. Nixon will become the President and end the
Vietnam War. Science fiction scholar Arthur D. Hlavaty wrote in
The New York Review of Science Fiction that it was the best of Slavitt's novels under his own name, praising its "much wit and pathos."
Kirkus Reviews wrote that Slavitt "managed to parlay medical sport into contemporary satire with geniality and casual bravura."
The New York Times called
The Outer Mongolian a "slight but springy entertainment" and a "nicely‐timed series of escalating capers," made up of "a number of political crotchets and a generous dollop of cynicism." ==Awards and honors==