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kickpleat's review against another edition
3.0
Once I got over the snappy, clever writing, I got a wee bit bored with all the literati talk (probably speaks more about me than Wolcott's storytelling). But then there's a chunk about movies & Pauline Kael, punk rock before skittering over the ballet section. Not a great read, but still interesting and man, he can turn a phrase.
mkat303's review against another edition
4.0
Wolcott is such a good writer that, despite not caring much about Pauline Kael or film reviewing or literary New York in the 1970s, I almost gave this 5 stars. However, then I got to his pornography and ballet chapters and the book went downhill from there. Still, it was a great read for a while.
jgn's review
4.0
If you know what "New York in the 1970s" means, then this book is for you. The author was a hustling young author from the hinterlands who got a start at the Village Voice, hung out at CBGB's, and saw movies as an apprentice of sorts to Pauline Kael, who he defends at some length. There's also a pretty interesting chapter on porn and ballet and the general "emergence of the body" as something worth thinking about in the 70s. A bit bloviating at the end, but worthy.
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