1998-01-20 Please, Carole, DO something with your talent

Carole Maso has an amazing gift for language. In some of the stories, like "Sappho Sings the World Ecstatic," she makes poetry, using rhythm and rhyme and unique combinations of words. So why is she trying to write prose? She has no talent for plot or dramaturgia; her "stories" go nowhere. They are most likely autobiographical, and real life does not make good fiction. Most authors who write from their own experience actually exert effort trying to turn life into art--but not Maso. Obviously, she is a talented writer. It strikes me as pure laziness--backed up by the postmodern notion of "challenging traditional structures"--that she makes no effort to use her talent to create anything resembling a narrative. I have read three books by Maso and I will continue to read her work because of its poetry. I look forward to a day when I can read a book written by her that does not leave me feeling irritated by her artistic arrogance and general self-involvement.