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So I'm maybe committing some kind of sin by reviewing this before I finish the last novella, but here goes anyway...These pieces are beautifully written but difficult to read in a way that I find grating rather than gratifying. Gass has a kind of Faulkner-ian cold, airy distance from the reader that makes it hard to get really immersed in the narrative. Much of the process of reading this book has felt like attending a recital. Gass is performing in front of you rather than pulling you into the reading experience, standing on stage and showing you what a good writer he is and expecting you to sit quietly and respect his talent. He's not wrong about his talent, mind you. His prose is beautiful and the structure of the book so far is exquisite, but I simply can't get fully behind a book that feels so unengaging.