weetzie who?

i've never read Francesca Lia Block. here's what happened: i was 12 when i discovered her. but that is WAY too young for Francesca Lia Block. or at least, when i was 12 it was. i suppose that 12 year olds nowadays are probably already watching more explicit things on HBO on a nightly basis. but anyway, i was not one of those 12 year olds. and then, by the time i was reminded of her existence, i was going through an intense Jane Austen phase and had pretty much no time for her.

but as a bookseller, i've remained very aware of Francesca. she's always on the radar, especially if you work in the teen section a lot. which i do.

which is why, 12 years after i first discovered her, i decided to pick up the ARC. also it had a pretty cover, and i am susceptible (VERY susceptible) to well-done covers. i'm glad i did.

Blood Roses didn't start off with a bang. i enjoyed the first few stories, but wasn't blown away. until, that is, i got to 'Skin Art', 'My Mother the Vampire', and 'Changeling'. 'Skin Art' and 'My Mother the Vampire' are linked, and just ... wow. really freakin' good. 'Changeling' is so sad (of course, all of them are, i don't think that she writes stories that aren't sad on some level) and so wistful and beautiful, i was stunned. whoever decided the order of these stories really knows their stuff.

so! PG13, folks, and utterly worth it. this goes on my shelf next to the other amazing gothic and girlie books.

the gothic and the girlie

at one of the other bookstores i worked for, "chick lit" was a dirty phrase. the manager, normally a mild-mannered, cheerful, and all around wonderful woman, would shoot you a look full of daggers if you uttered it in front of her. "fluff" would also get you a look, but minus the daggers (probably because it's not gender specific).

but let's be honest. there are some books that, by their nature, appeal more to women than to men. and vice versa. aforementioned manager even instituted a shelving policy to highlight this -- there was a section called "rough reads" that was the male equivalent to the Unutterable Phrase. and those books are not all "fluff," either.

my case in point, when i argue about this with people, is usually Barbara Kingsolver. if you've worked books, you know that the customers who buy these books are almost invariably female. but you'd be hardpressed to find anyone who would call her works fluffy. she tackles serious issues with complex, articulate, and stunning prose. if you don't believe me, pick up a copy of The Poisonwood Bible or Prodigal Summer.

which brings me to my latest read: The Monsters of Templeton, by Lauren Groff. it's Barbara Kingsolver meets Charlotte Bronte. what does that mean? it means that this novel is a gothic family history, told by a narrator just like Taylor from The Bean Trees. The Monsters of Templeton brings girlie to gothic with stunning effect. which means, of course, that i absolutely loved it.

it's funny that i'd find this book so soon after reading The Thirteenth Tale for the first time (but as i mentioned before these things just seem to happen). this was another modern tribute to the gothic mystery. as i read it, i couldn't help but think about it as if Edgar Allen Poe had concocted a family history for A.S. Byatt, which was then revealed by a quietly endearing mouse of a biographer. And then, to top it all off, I picked up Mary Modern, which is gothic by feel if not by plot (who ever thought cloning would feel gothic?) and that's a compliment. Large house with hidden passageways, chronologically displaced characters wandering around, cloning, a rabid preacher -- Camille De Angelis has written a bizarre and fascinating book.

so, while you're waiting for The Monsters of Templeton to hit the shelves (February 2008), you have some books to while away the time.