MEMORIES FROM A SINKING SHIP

The author reads a selection from an autobiographical volume set in Chicago and elsewhere in the 1950s. One might surmise from the title that the young hero of these short stories may not have enjoyed the world's happiest childhood. One might be right. He has a hoodlum father and a sexually errant mom. Further, he and his precocious pals seem adrift in a dubious sea of conflicting values. One hears echoes of James T. Farrell, Nelson Algren, and even Milan Kundera in the lean prose and dark humor. That is, one WOULD--if Gifford could read as well as he writes. But his narration is labored and dull, relieved only by the atmospheric musical interludes between stories. There's more to this writing than meets the ear. Y.R. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/ MAY 08]