Title: Wasteland
Author: Franseca Lia Block
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pub. Date: November 1, 2003
Length: 160 Pages
Summary (from goodreads):
When you were a baby I sat very still to hold you. I could see the veins through your skin like a map to inside you. I stopped breathing so you wouldn't ...
You were just a boy on a bed in a room, like a kaleidoscope is a tube full of bits of broken glass. But the way I saw you was pieces refracting the light, shifting into an infinite universe of flowers and rainbows and insects and planets, magical dividing cells, pictures no one else knew ...
Your whole life you can be told something is wrong and so you believe it.
My Thoughts: "The garden was combing her hair and putting on her earrings. The house was full of dancing creatures, not male not female but both, two lovers in one body. The books downstairs were reciting their poetry to each other, rubbing together, whispering through the leather covers." - from Wasteland
I'm heads over heals in love with Francesca Lia Block's writing. She just has this way with words; her writing flows smoothly and poetically, and in such a way that the characters live both on the pages and off. A story of the dark and light sides of love, Wasteland will pull your heartstrings and stay with you for a long time. It's captivating, realistic, and beautiful; a story impossible to put down no matter how hard you try.
I'm heads over heals in love with Francesca Lia Block's writing. She just has this way with words; her writing flows smoothly and poetically, and in such a way that the characters live both on the pages and off. A story of the dark and light sides of love, Wasteland will pull your heartstrings and stay with you for a long time. It's captivating, realistic, and beautiful; a story impossible to put down no matter how hard you try.
Despite how much I loved this book, it's not for everyone. In fact, some say that this book is disgusting, because it deals with incest. I completely understand where these people are coming from, however, I didn't mind it. I think that Block is a lovely author, and I praise her, because she can take any subject head on and write a beautiful story of it, no matter if some people don't approve.
This is a hauntingly beautiful story, told from three points of view, and written in lyrical, dreamy paragraphs. Block describes her characters with such compassion and emotion, it just blows me away. If you're not very familiar with her writing style you may be a bit confused at the beginning, but it will be worth it.
I'm not one to judge, in fact I like to read books with challenging topics. I read Forbidden which deals with incest and it was amazing so if done right, it can definitely be worth reading about. I can't really make out what it's about because the synopsis doesn't tell me anything! LOL I'll do some further research into this one. Thanks for the great review :)
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds beautifully written and really interesting. I will add to my to-read list!
ReplyDeleteThis is one of my favorites from Francesca Lia Block. The story and the characters definitely stay with you long after you flip the last page. I had wished it was longer and even more detailed. Glad you liked it.
ReplyDeleteIncest doesn't bother me, and I read the book. It was FANTASTIC. So...ethereal. If you ignore the ending, which was a bit of a cop-out, it becomes this haunting thing that begs the question: What is wrong with wrong?
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