Rating: 
Summary: What a letdown!
Review: I was really excited that a new novel had been written by the author of OLDEST LIVING CONFEDERATE WIDOW. Maybe I anticipated too much, but no way does this book live up to its predecessor. WIDOW brought me into the world of the American South and helped me to understand so much of the experiences of the people who lived through the Civil War and of the mind set of their descendents. PLAYS WELL talked about the New York art scene of the 1980's, but I always felt like Gurganus was treating me like an outsider who could never really understand what it was like. There were some amazingly touching scenes (such as when the narrator first notices his friend's telltale "spot") that serve to remind us of the level of writing Gurganus is capable of achieving, but those moments are way too few for me to recommend this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Drags early on, but stick with it!
Review: I'm familiar with Mr. Gurganus's cozy, raw style, and come from the same state and area as he does, while having also witnessed glimpses of New York's seedier gay side in the early 1980s. My first statement about this book is, don't be turned off by the silly-looking cover, which really has nothing to do with the overall somber and literary tone of this marvelous book. (I hope the cover art will be changed for the paperback!) I bought this book instantly, both because I am familiar with Gurganus's work and because I am very interested in AIDS-inspired fiction. The opening 'dildo' scene grabs the reader's attention but seems no more than a ploy to do just that; it was somewhat out of place in the rest of the story. I found the first third of the novel tedious and had to force myself through it, but about 40% into it, I came to the realization that this book is an 'acquired taste', but once acquired, it was quite impossible not to think about constantly. I would have liked to have holed myself up and done nothing but bury myself in the bygone world of this mesmerising story, but not having that option, I had more time to reflect upon its spell between reading periods. Although not perfect, this novel is as "from the heart" as any I can recall in quite some time. I wanted to track down the author and grill him about its writing, its characters, and its events, which must surely have basis in history. I encourage potential readers to ignore the cover art and attack the meat of this book, for an experience you will not forget, nor will you wish to.
Rating: 
Summary: My trip down memory lane -- Allan played well with me, too.
Review: I've seen Allan Gurganus only once since high school -- at a local book signing for "Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All." For quite a while, I have wanted to let Allan know how much his warmth and humor meant to me during a time when not much else made me smile. Upon learning that he was scheduled to read from "Plays Well With Others" at New York's New School, I cashed in a few thousand frequent flyer points and booked my flight. I was not disappointed either by Allan's book or by his performance. I believe honesty to be a key element for a successful story. "Plays Well With Others" is one of THE most honest (and compelling) love stories I've ever read. It continually reminded me of the things that endeared me to Allan many years ago. It took courage for him to write this book -- more to have it published. I'm grateful for having read it. Thank you, Allan -- again.
Rating: 
Summary: A glorious banquet of language, imagery, and rage
Review: If American literature of the last decade were a color, it would probably be medium gray, with silver and tan highlights. If it were music, it would be minimalist. Authors' voices are missing or consciously disengaged. Then along comes Allan Gurganus who, in "Plays Well With Others," puts the AIDS crisis and New York art scene of the 80s on paper as no one ever has, or will ever have to again. His colors are primary; his soundtrack is Mahler; his rage is heartbreaking and wildly funny. If you don't like getting involved in the characters' lives, stay away from this wonderful book. If, however, you revel in the use of language for its own sake, in raunchy humor and sexual exploits, in characters who jump off the page and into your brain even after you have put the book down, then this one is for you. Gurganus has Robert, the central character, accuse Hartley, the narrator and Gurganus' voice, of only ever wanting a Thank You from life. Well, Mr. Gurganus, thank you.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful and worth rereading
Review: It's been a long time since a book, picked up purely on a whim, touched me so deeply. I actually cried as I read the reconciliation scene between Bama, Robert and Hartley in Ossorio's after...well... but I don't want to give it away. Anyone who has friends, such good friends that they can't quite believe their good fortune, will identify with Hartley. Get past the first 25 pages, and if the "gay theme" turns you off, get over it. It's a heartwarming book about best friends living in an exciting time in a big city, and being a little in awe of it all.
Rating:
Summary: Sentimental but touching
Review: J.D. Salinger defined sentimentality as loving something more than God loves it. By that standard, this is a very sentimental book. In my opinion, none of the three main characters are anywhere near as adorable as the author keeps insisting they are. Their most notable characteristic is a non-stop (and rather interchangeable) flow of campy repartee that might convey tenderness, heartbreak, or whatever to someone steeped in their milieu but which kept me at a considerable emotional distance. The doomed idol in particular is dreadfully flimsy - the author's wet-dream of a perfectly beautiful, perfectly talented, perfectly unattainable (for him) Golden Boy. This sort of wish fulfillment at the reader's expense is no more palatable in a queenly context than it was Hemingway's "butch" one with their impossibly idealized heroines. That said, I was moved in spite of myself, largely due to the author's considerable powers as a prose stylist. And his gift for the telling detail is striking - i.e. the paper found among an AIDS victim's effects listing "100 Words That Rhyme With Pain". I suspect that other writers have done more with this material but I'm not sorry to have read it.
Rating:
Summary: Sublime
Review: Like many readers I've found the books I most cherish are those into which I put the most work. (The Sound and the Fury, being the most memorable.) However, Mr. Gurganus has given us a book that doesn't so much require an effort from the reader, as much as an hesitation. The book is written in a loquacious and rich prose, the brand of language I, a northern, pray truly does prevail in the south. There is a thickness to the language that supports the reader, but which also lulls and draws one closer to a damning sentimentality. I blieve those who read this book ought to prepare themselves with weeks of cold asceticism. The book borders on that line between indulgance and perfection. Of course, I believe it is nearer the latter.
Rating:
Summary: Slice of literary pecan pie
Review: Like most southern authors, Alan Gurganus lays on the purple prose with a thick trowel. The result is sometimes too rich, a Literary Pecan Pie. The opening scene of this novel mixes death and hilarity into an intense confection, then the pace slows down considerably. The narrator constantly tells us how beautiful and talented his protagonists are, but shows very little of these gifts. When disaster finally strikes, he skims overthe surface of their suffering.
Rating:
Summary: Slice of literary pecan pie
Review: Like most southern authors, Alan Gurganus lays on the purple prose with a thick trowel. The result is sometimes too rich, a Literary Pecan Pie. The opening scene of this novel mixes death and hilarity into an intense confection, then the pace slows down considerably. The narrator constantly tells us how beautiful and talented his protagonists are, but shows very little of these gifts. When disaster finally strikes, he skims overthe surface of their suffering.
Rating:
Summary: unbelievable
Review: Like the New York Times review says, this is just unbelievable. Gurganus' writing is episodically thrilling, but the best bits are strewn like chunks through the text, and the characters are ridiculously drawn (I ask you: a cipher called HARVEY MIMS?). I felt excluded and patronised, and I have to be honest: I didn't finish it. It seemed like too much of a long haul for a story and characters I cared little about.
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