Girl Who Loved Garbo

Like Anne Bancroft's character in the film Garbo Speaks , industrial designer Rebeccah Duffy is obsessed by the film star. And like a true romantic heroine, Rebeccah is also bored with her lover. So when Eddie goes off to a new job in California, Rebeccah stays in Manhattan and has an affair with Joel, a classic sleaze. Upon learning that she is pregnant, Rebeccah faces daunting choices: single motherhood, abortion or a dull marriage. None of her dilemmas will enthrall readers. Whenever emotions threaten to engage, Gallagher interrupts with extraneous topics, either alluding to various icons (Emily Dickinson, Frank Lloyd Wright, Stephen Jay Gould, Madonna); analyzing social problems (homelessness, high technology); or discussing Garbo's on- and off-screen appearances. A ``merger of hip and yup'' (Rebeccah's comment on California), plus ``retro'' (an oft-used adjective), this first novel adds up to a traditional duo: ho and hum. (May)