From: syderange@aol.com (Syderange)
Subject: Review of Volmann
Date: 13 Mar 1995 22:29:26 -0500

Whores for Gloria

by
William T. Volmann

First Published in the U.S.
by Pantheon Books 1992
Published by Penguin Books 1994

In the literary universe where weird is revered, Volmann is the man. 
Noted for incredibly in- depth research of his subject matter,  Volmann
really dove into the shit when he chose hookers and booze as the metier
for his masterful novel, Whores for Gloria.  For "Whores", Volmann spent
long hours hanging out with San Francisco's finest, the working girls of
the Tenderloin District.

In "Whores", Volmann has sifted through the San Francisco gutter and
created a collage of a novel from the wrecked humanity he found residing
there.  Ostensibly the story is about Jimmy, a Vietnam vet, who is
searching for his lost love Gloria.  Whether or not Gloria ever existed or
is simply a figment of Jimmy's swiss cheesed memory stands as the central
plot device around which the author staples the true heart of the novel,
the lives of the hookers that Jimmy frequents in his drunken travails. 
Volmann's extensive research is apparent in the twisted tales these
flatbackers tell.

At the end of the novel the author has provided a glossary of terms and a
profile of a Tenderloin pro for the reader's edification.  Volmann visited
and tarried on the other side and has written a novel that leaves the
taste of stale beer on the palate and the smell of raw sex in the hair. 
Read it, sniff it, stroke it and take a long hot shower with a shot of
penicillin just for luck.

c. David M. Glitzer 1994