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Title: 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.
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