Hank O'Neal

This is a memoir of Hank O'Neal's friendship with Djuna Barnes in the late 1970s, when the famed author was approaching her ninetieth year. The book is, in many respect, an invaluable account of the reclusive author's final years, offering a detailed account of the views and opinions of the elderly Barnes; her recounted reflections on her legacy and oeuvre are particularly interesting, although her homophobia and racism is surprising and certainly not the Barnes of Nightwood. The book, however, is repetitive, often telling the reader the same story or insight twice over. The prose style is not particularly enjoyable and, although only 200 pages long, it felt like a long read. As a source for modernist scholars, it is useful. For those looking for an account of Djuna Barnes, readers will be better served by Philip Herring's much more readable biography.… (mer)