Lila Says

This is surely a book not to be dismissed. Id seen the movie and was intrigued to read the novel on which it was based (also I now appreciate how well adapted and executed the big screen version really is). It's a breathtaking work filled with great passages and emotion. You'll want to devour it in a single sitting, even if the subject matter is disturbing to you...it will enthrall and engross you. It certainly impressed me and I highly recommend you give it a read.

How often can you say a story with nearly harcodre sex depictions is on a high literary level? You can quite say this about this gem: the sex is not the core of the story, but a part of a very tragic relationship between two teenagers in Paris, in the ugly part of town. The sex becomes an accessory to a very clean and mature way of story-telling. No boring nonsense, no boring descriptions and, what is best, no "elegant" language at all. It is simple, with no ridiculous metaphors, and beautiful, just like the best poetry. Buy it and enjoy what a good writer can do.

In my opinion, there is nothing more powereful than a book that makes you want to reach inside and touch the characters. Throughout this book, I wanted to do just that. The stream-of-conciousness style pulled me into Chimo's mind and wouldn't let me out; I saw the ghettos as he saw them, and I saw Lila as he saw her. I understood what he understood because his language made me feel it, and it devistated me. It's very seldom that I read a book and have to take a few moments after finishing it to gather up the pieces and put myself back together. Jane Eyre, Tess of the D'Urbervilles, and Jude the Obscure are just a few of these works; and the fact that the slim little volume "Lila Says" can do just as much to me as those classics speaks volumes.

If you had ten stars for your ratings, I would give this book twelve of them. The Algerian slums outside of Paris. A 19-year old boy who knows that he has no future. Yet he steals paper and pencil to write stories, dreaming to become a celebrated writer. A 16-year old girl who dreams of perfect love. She knows she will never achieve it. So she talks dirty to force it. An incredibly powerful story of two people condemned to live all their life in abject poverty, knowing this - and still hoping, trying to force destiny. A very sad book, and very disturbing.

This was such a powerful book. The main character is a wonderful person. Reading this book i could feel myself falling a little in love with him, identifying with his struggles, although I never suffered them, and feeling a well of sadness at the helplessness and hopelessness he feels. You just want to pull him out of there, give him a hug, some money, a reason to live. The mystery behind the origin of the book is also interesting. This is a great book, delivered with a powerful narrative style. Definetely worth it. It grabs you and doesn't let go until you finish. Filled with powerful images. I highly recommend it, but it's not for the faint-hearted and the weak of stomach. It's ugly and beautiful, just like life. It's a high dose of reality, bleak and long suffering. Make sure there's a fluffy movie on t.v. for when you finish. You'll need it!