NP - Plist opinion on W Gass
Mark Sacha
msacha1121 at gmail.com
Tue Oct 21 08:08:44 CDT 2014
Gass' style seems to alternate between musical and cringe-inducing. It can
be sort of overly formal - he has a huge penchant for alliteration, for
instance - but at its best, it's very good at fleshing out the so-called
world within the word. Worth reading, I think, but it's hard to take in
bulk - part of the reason why The Tunnel seemed to be such a slog. He's
published more criticism than he has fiction, and for my money he's more
effective in the former.
Haven't read Omensetter's Luck, though... will get around to it someday.
On Tue, Oct 21, 2014 at 8:41 AM, Mark Kohut <mark.kohut at gmail.com> wrote:
> I feel the same way about OMENSETTER's LUCK....The early book of short
> stories is a bit " easier" to sorta get but I can't remember them at all; I
> remember feeling so " in" when I got his special printing of WILLIE
> MASTER's LONESOME WIFE thru Tri-Quarterly Mag back in the day. ( didn't
> know what to make of it when young ). I thought his FICTION AND THE FIGURES
> OF LIFE taught me good stuff, and I'm sure it did but, later, it seemed
> too.....removed from the life in fiction......but I've never
> revisited.....Love the idea of BLUE but never got to....and was too lazily
> undisciplined to keep reading THE TUNNEL as I was not re some other
> writers.......( but undisciplined is the more, so to speak)
>
> I have heard he is a rewarding teacher, influencing many writers. one,
> Garth Hallberg, has a big book coming [CITY ON FIRE] that is in the
> GASS--PYNCHON tradition, ( so I've heard) so to almost meaninglessly say,
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
> On Oct 21, 2014, at 6:55 AM, Antonin Scriabin <kierkegaurdian at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> I consider myself a fan of Gass, but I have only read Omensetter's Luck.
> It was one if the hardest, densest short novels I've come across. I also
> enjoyed him on Bookworm with Michael Silverblatt. So I like him, but don't
> have as much experience with his writing as I do Gaddis' and TP's.
> On Oct 21, 2014 4:06 AM, "matthew cissell" <mccissell at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Howdy listers,
>>
>> It's clear that we have some William Gaddis fans on the list, but how
>> do folks feel about William Gass? I don't seem to recall having seen his
>> name mentioned here (of course I don't read every mail either). Anybody?
>> Two cents of feedback?
>>
>> Have a happy Tuesday cuz the Happy Mondays are gone.
>>
>> ciao
>> Otis
>>
>
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