From Publishers Weekly
Set mostly in the latter part of this century in either Louisiana or Texas, the stories in this accomplished debut collection introduce characters drawn from a diverse cross section of America. Mogan's range is wide enough to do justice to both the narrator of ``Syzygy,'' a chillingly self-absorbed matron who long ago stole and married her twin sister's beau, and the angry, loving, AIDS-wracked gay lovers of ``See to Appreciate.'' In ``Desaparachos,'' which centers on a group of Salvadorans illegally migrating to the U.S., Mogan constructs a subtle biblical allegory while exploring the collision between the two cultures (which turns out to be literal as well as figurative). She also brilliantly captures the cadences and quirks of vernacular speech, as in ``See Ya Later, Floydada,'' in which a radio announcer offers for sale "`a pire of what cheers upholstered in naugahyde.'" Many of these intricately constructed stories end with a bittersweet nugget of revealed wisdom, such as the realization by the protagonist of ``The Proselyte,'' that ``from now on he would be carrying the burden of seeing partly through his parents' eyes, partly through Hector's but mostly through his own.'' Searing, unforgettable images--including a deserted, industrially poisoned town transformed into a bizarre and kitschy Christmas spectacle in ``A Certain Lot or Parcel of Land''--seem to be a specialty of this gifted writer. Bracing, original and peculiarly American, Mogan's voice is mature enough to explore public themes and issues like abortion, immigration and race with an insight that springs from her fidelity to her characters.
Copyright 1995 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
This raw, colorful debut collection by Texan Mogan packs a visceral punch as unsparing as Flannery O'Connor's, though Mogan lacks the patience needed for a timely delivery. In the "Age of Reason," when Rachel's grandfather, Grundy, becomes "one with the Spirit," he speaks in tongues and schedules the Rapture-the End, for the day after Easter. Although it doesn't come, his dreams foretold his family's deliverance and he must act. In "Mad," mute Baby Girl, age ten, watches as her mother and the black handywoman join forces to battle a raving, drunken old tinker who has invaded their home. The title story tells of a forbidden interracial romance in a Louisiana old folks' home for the "about-to-be-dead" and the "all-but-dead," where a suitor's jealousy and the staff's spiteful neglect doom the aged couple. With a touch of polish and some restraint about killing off her more interesting characters, Mogan could emerge as a major Southern talent. Recommended.
Ron Antonucci, Hudson Lib. & Historical Soc., Ohio
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Ron Antonucci, Hudson Lib. & Historical Soc., Ohio
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
