GILLIAN HILLS (1944-) "Wild Oats." Cover illustration for the paperback edition of Wild Oats by Jacob Epstein (New York: Pocket Books, 1980). Colored pencils on illustration board. 13 3/4 x 10 inches, matted and framed to 20 1/2 x 17 inches. Signed and dated "G. Hills 81" in lower right image. Includes a copy of the printed cover.
Wild Oats is about an average college freshman, Billy Williams, who follows a beautiful woman to California to work as a farmhand. The book received positive reviews, but also sparked controversy. In 1980, author Martin Amis claimed there were significant similarities between the novel and his own, The Rachel Papers. Epstein apologized, admitting to the plagiarism but claiming it was unintentional.The scandal was ranked number 3 in Literary Hub's top 12 literary plagiarism scandals under the caption, "When a debut novelist stole from Martin Amis-and Amis himself caught him."
