lesbianhistorian ’s Reviews > Black Swans > Status Update

Okay. I am about halfway through this collection and my thoughts are thus: huh. I'm still not quite sure how to feel about Babitz's stories. Her writing seems like it is on the precipice of really good analysis of the culture and social life in Hollywood in the last quarter of the century. Which like. It's fine that her pieces don't serve as analysis, I just expect that more out of fiction, rather than short stories?

I'm not quite sure how to feel about Babitz's writing yet, which feels odd now that I am so far into the book. When I was reading Slouching Towards Bethlehem and Bliss Montage, I was able to pick out things that I liked about Didion and Ma's prose and how they told stories but my opinion on Babitz is still inconclusive. Its a little frustrating, but maybe its also making me want to read on.