Girl Goddess #9

Girl Goddess #9
Francesca Lia Block
Published by Harper Teen, 1998; ISBN 006447187X
Recommended reading age: Young Adult

Summary:
Francesca Lia Block takes her trademark writing and applies it to imaginative short stories. Her characters resemble Weetzie Bat in that they’re all independent, strong, and hopelessly fragile. This collection includes a story about a girl living in New York with two moms; a story about two girls who finally get to meet their rock star hero; and a tale about a confused groupie. Block weaves together the gritty realities of rock star life with the beauty of oceans and night skies.

Review:
These stories read so fluidly that they almost feel too simple. If not for the complicated subject matter, Girl Goddess #9 would almost resemble a children’s book: it reads that quickly and sucks you in that easily. Like in her Weetzie Bat stories, Block uses crazy metaphors and over-the-top imagery to paint beautiful and tragic pictures of teenage life. She deals with serious social issues through her own brand of magic realism.

"She was totally in a trance, transfixed. She looked even more beautiful then. I saw what the rock stars saw. She wasn’t some little girl. She was this goddess or this fairy princess, this gorgeous alien super-freak. They thought and she thought that her beauty was because of them, that she was reflecting them back to them, but I knew that she was the one. The beauty was hers, she gave it to them."

I recommend Girl Goddess #9 to fans of short stories, fans of Weetzie Bat, and girls looking for a new, imaginative take on teenage life.