[Aside] from the paucity of Miss Smith's writing powers, the deficiencies of ["Tomorrow Will Be Better"] are great enough to exclude it from even the most summery of summer readings.
The aim to exploit Brooklyn is obvious, but the result fails to communicate any special sense of place…. There is not a single memorable image, no sensory impressions of odors or sounds of Brooklyn and Brooklyn flats, and no real understanding of the squalor of Brooklyn poor. The method used to denote the special geography of the story is restricted almost entirely to dialogue—and a monotonous burlesque it is—which marks the characters as queers, beloved by Miss Smith it must be presumed, but queers just the same. (pp. 503-04)
This is a free excerpt of 118 words. There are 229 words (approx.
1 page at 300 words per page) in the full critical essay.
Read the rest of this Criticism with our Smith, Betty 1896–1972: Critical Essay by G. E. Miles Access Pass.
