Gaslight

Rating:
Summary: Surfacing
Review: As the novel she was writing self-destructed on the page, Guess found herself adrift and at a loss as to why it failed. While trying to figure this out, and writing through the reasons, a new work emerged, "Gaslight", which is a gorgeous blend of memoir and fiction. Chronicling her struggles with anorexia, with homophobia and sexism, and with the politics of her art, Guess shares with us the process of creativity and its effects on the artist at work. Like the water that flows through that failed novel, "Gaslight" has a hidden strength, a luminous beauty, a kaleidoscope of muted colors that speaks volumes without dragging the readers away on riptides. This buoyant work reminds us of the power of words, especially in the lives of the marginalized (women, queers, the poor). It quenches and nourishes like water, and supports us as we reach for the surface for that breath of crisp air.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I read the author's last novel, Switch, and loved it. This memoir, or really a mix of memoir and fiction, doesn't measure up. We don't get anything new about anorexia, sexism, homophobia. I enjoyed the Southern family history sections, but the rest seemed too familiar. Carol Guess says she admires Carole Maso and Rebecca Brown, and I'd recommend those writers or Switch over this book.