Not Telling Mother: Stories from a Life - Softcover

These mostly interconnected stories get off to a bad start with Salvatore's clumsy imagery ("prone-on-the-potholed sand days"). But the collection soon turns into a spirited kaleidoscope of lesbian life. Three couples gather for a vacation in Provincetown, but infidelity lurks within the sextet, and the resolution threads its ways through several stories. Renee, the central character, needs some resolutions, too, of her past and present. She ponders her early role as the "first in a series of outrageous stunts and bizarre activities" of a former love, Roseanne, who gets married. Wistfully, she recalls her girlhood crush on Penny and later realizes that her own mother was loved by a cousin who entered a convent to smother that silent passion. Along the way we meet other characters, like Mike, the vindictive husband of Chrissie who runs off with Eileen, and Tess, whose idea of a turn-on is to whisk a waitress to the back of a restaurant for a "test drive" before a date. Salvatore ( Love, Zena Beth ) adds new twists to the themes of coming out and homophobia, and shows unrequited love, jealousy, betrayal and exploitation as the unhappy flip side of all forms of love, gay and straight.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In these brief stories, Salvatore examines the dilemma of whether to hide or reveal one's identity--in this case, being a lesbian. If a woman tells the truth about her life, what price will she pay? Will she lose her mother's love and emotional support? In the title story, this is exactly what Renee agonizes over. Other characters worry about ridicule or physical harm. It appears that Salvatore has lived through similar situations and has met women like the ones she portrays, because none is unbelievable or phony--though occasionally they are irritating. Too bad the author didn't include women from diverse races or ethnic backgrounds or even economic classes; almost all fit into the yuppie category. And because the stories move so quickly, none goes into great depth. Though starting with a good premise, the collection as a whole is choppy and uneven. A disappointing effort from a writer whose first book, Benediction ( LJ 10/1/91), was nominated for a Lambda Book Award.
- Lisa Nussbaum, Euclid P.L., Ohio
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.