Girl Goddess #9: Nine Stories

I look back now, and I realize that Girl Goddess #9 was a big part of my formative years. It was the first FLB book, and it still one of my favorites.When I read the title story, I remember thinking, "Well,I like Sarah McLachlan, maybe I should give Tori Amos a try." (If you don't know how that story ended, well, know that I think nothing of driving ten hours to go to a Tori concert.) And, a year or so later, I re-read the story and thought, "Hey, I like Sarah and Tori, maybe I should try the Cocteau Twins." Thus began another addiction which annually saps me about fifty bucks.I was going through major issues with a very dear friend as I read "Pixie and Pony," and for years now, those words have stayed with me: "Best friends? We are sisters." After my mother's injury, I struggled to reconcile the reality of her new self with the way she had once been. The story "La" was of enormous help.GG#9 is every girl's diary. It is all of our fears and hopes and drems. It is everything we've questioned about life, our futures, our parents, our sexuality, and love. Each girl is perfectly unique, very mysterious, and yet completely familiar. Each of these girls is like a little facet of each other, and of ourselves.

In "Pixie and Pony" a seemingly trite, even shallow emotional need is shown to be an important part of a sensitive young person's life-- the need to call someone her best friend. That story is one of the less dramatic pieces in this collection, but it resonates the more you read it. And it's one of the most lyrically written stories in the bunch, which is high praise considering the lush profusion of sights, sounds and smells evoked in these pages. Those who have attempted Block's novels and found them too overwhelmingly whimsical might want to give these stories a shot-- in the shorter format, Block can scale down some of the name-dropping catalogs of cool and focus in on the emotions at the heart of her tales. The novella-length "Dragons in Manhattan" tackles some of the themes of the middle Weetzie Bat books, but with more directness and a somewhat brisker sense of humor, thanks to our heroine Tuck and her hilariously-titled dances. The title story gives probably the first evidence of a sense of irony from this author-- and it's refreshing to see some of her heroines' pretensions get popped, while leaving their self-respect intact and even heightened. "Blue" and "Rave" are the most devastating stories here; "Rave" concerns a doomed groupie and the narrator who loves her-- the epilogue is particularly rich in its evocation of the emotional aftershocks of his relationship with her. "Blue" is more hopeful, but also even more painful in its depiction of a cavernous loneliness-- it's one of the best short stories of our time. The final story "Orpheus" relates to the experiences of the twenties, bringing the collection to an ambiguous conclusion--though, judging from the autobiographical hints, everything comes out right in the end. Like the bulk of Block's output, this is already a staple of adolescent reading lists, but this is also on the short list of her books with the most appeal for a wider audience; it's probably the best single-volume introduction to this fertile imagination.

Out of all of Francesca Lia Block's books, I think this is one of the best. Although I don't particularly like short stories in general, this book left me captivated. My favorite is Blue because it was so touching, and Ms.Block's writing style is so lyrical that it really brings out the sadness even more than imaginable.(it made me cry!) Anyway, the whole collection of short stories was great, and this is one book I'll be reading again and again.

Block at her diamond vision, teenage rock star, sugar candy best. Her writing is adolescent - that is, it is contradictory, infuriating, sometimes mistaken, and splendidly beautiful. Have you forgotten the tragic glory of being a teenager? Read this book. Are you living with the tragic glory of a teenager, and from where you're standing does it look like meaningless rebellion and mess? Read this book before you give it to the brave, scared, brand-new adult in your house, and remember what it was like to be her.

the best book you can ever possibly read. its not trashy, not sappy, not phoney. and its not boring. the most realistic stories, yet told in a magical pixie-punk way. and they're not superficial. they are the whole raw truth of the world and feelings of the humans living in it. i could not put it down. my personal favorite story is blue. it purly touched my soul in a way no other story ever could or will. basically,to sum up my feelings about this book, the most wonderful book of stories in the world, as best i can, is to say that you feel for the characters. you move with the characters you become the characters. This book is pure magic.