Lying Memoirist Was Really Trying To Go The Whole Nine Yards
She's lucky she was found out when she was
 

Here's Margaret Seltzer, the con-artist/liar responsible for the memoir Love and Consequences, in which she faked a past as a foster child raised by a black family of gang members in South Central L.A. Her publishing company, which pulled her book as soon as she was outed (by her big sister no less!) as a privileged young woman who hailed from a two-parent home in Sherman Oaks, Calif., surely didn't want you to see this. In the video, Seltzer, as "Margaret Jones," tells her fake story in a fake accent. Watching it, it's hard to imagine that this woman didn't think she'd be found out.

To make matters even worse, the actual book is not only offensive, it's also terrible — despite the glowing review it received in the New York Times. Click through for an excerpt.

I walked beside Mother Evans, carrying her Bible … I smiled back, but then, before I could say anything, a man came around the corner of the building and grabbed Mother Evans by the arm.

"Gimme the purse, ol' lady." His head looked nervously from side to side. "And the diamond ring, too."

Mother Evans shook her head … She reached slowly toward her bag, but then, instead of taking the bag from her shoulder, she reached into her coat and pulled out a small pistol and turned back on the man.

"Punk ass mothafukka," she said, pointing the pistol in his face. "Git up on outta here, you ain takin shyt. Punk mothafukka." The man looked shocked for a minute and then took off …

Mother Evans tucked the pistol back into her jacket and opened her door as if nothing had happened.

Seriously.

[via Racialicious]

Comments (12)

No. 1 · khia213

Lying heifer!

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 12:11 pm
No. 2 · BoredKidz!

Bravo!!!

When is she going to get her fake memoir be turned into a "whitey saves the colored masses" movie??? And SHE can play herself, too. AND expect that she'll get an Oscar nod, too.

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 12:14 pm
No. 3 · shakti

ugh. it was painful to watch. people like that scare me. she, clearly, needs professional help.

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 12:23 pm
No. 4 · SweetDiva

Her sister dropped a dime on her?! Now that is pretty gangsta! LOL!

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 12:29 pm
No. 5 · Ali

Ohmigod this is horrible. Margaret Seltzer is the devil!

@SweetDiva - Haha, dimed out by her sister indeed! This shit would be hilarious is wasn't so pathetic.

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 1:03 pm
No. 6 · Ali

Oops meant, "if it wasn't so pathetic."

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 1:04 pm
No. 7 · JM

Maybe she thought we would be mesmerized by her breasts. LOL!
Seriously, it seems with her, JT Leroy, James Frey - that people are caught up in the hype and mystique of the novel, instead of the literary merits themselves. Even sadder that respected reviewers are guilty of this as well.

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 1:29 pm
No. 8 · Chic Noir

BoredKidz- She play a teacher in that movie.

Read the book for yourselves people, don't believe the critics.

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 4:18 pm
No. 9 · Ali

@Chic Noir - Have you read the book? If so what are your thoughts? It's not criticism to say she made it all up. It's not a popular opinion that she's a culture-appropriating liar, it's a fact.

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 4:59 pm
No. 10 · molecularshyness

wow. she is terrible. the accent keeps coming in and out. why would you even want to fake something that you don't know anything about?

"i've taught history classes, you know, through the mail, to kids, on the internet."

really?

what a crock.

Posted: Apr 30, 2008 at 7:43 pm
No. 11 · zzz

Thank you for posting this! I heard about this crap and couldn't understand how she pulled it off. Now seeing her, and hearing her bullshit Southernish, wannabe street accent - that barely conceals her Valley voice - it's obvious that no one involved in getting the book done had ever been anywhere near South Central. Oh, humanity.

Posted: May 1, 2008 at 12:11 am
No. 12 · jenny

i've read quite a few excerpts and they continually get worse. it was so obvious that she was full of shit! it makes you really think about the reviewers at the nytimes, people in the publishing industry, etc…could they ever recognize an authentic voice?

Posted: May 1, 2008 at 12:29 am
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