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A review by briandice
Obscene Gestures for Women by Janet Kauffman
4.0
Fifteen stories, some extremely short, combined to clock-in at less than 100 pages. The writing is beautiful - Kauffman clips sentences together like the furrowed rows in the rural places the stories are set. Some pieces are too short to ever take hold; others are glorious in their understated terse language.
My copy of this book is an advanced copy, uncorrected proof purchased from John Barth's estate sale last year. It has that sun-damaged, long shelf wear that I love, the cover is bespeckled like the freckles that come from too much UVA exposure. The page numbers are hand written - did Barth do those? - but the cover and spine feel fresh and unsullied. I might be the first person to read this copy. I hope I am not the last person to read this collection - Kauffman has proven to me that she has the goods, an author with the skill of Jane Smiley for telling the stories of the American farm belt.
My copy of this book is an advanced copy, uncorrected proof purchased from John Barth's estate sale last year. It has that sun-damaged, long shelf wear that I love, the cover is bespeckled like the freckles that come from too much UVA exposure. The page numbers are hand written - did Barth do those? - but the cover and spine feel fresh and unsullied. I might be the first person to read this copy. I hope I am not the last person to read this collection - Kauffman has proven to me that she has the goods, an author with the skill of Jane Smiley for telling the stories of the American farm belt.