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Title: Baby Be-Bop by Francesca Lia Block, David Diaz ISBN: 0-06-447176-4 Publisher: HarperTrophy Pub. Date: 30 May, 1997 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $4.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.62 (13 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: It was a wonderfully described, uncommon, story of struggle.
Comment: I love Baby Be Bop because it beautifully confronts a subject that most people are afraid to touch. Lia Block describes the struggle of a boy from L.A., during what is assumed to be recent times, and how he is having trouble coming to terms with his homosexuality. My favorite aspect of Lia Block's writing is her avante-garde description. I am normally a person who hates reading, but I was unable to put down Baby Be Bop, as well as the preceeding four books of the Weetzie Bat series. The entire Weetzie Bat series is outstanding but only those who can appreciate the subject matter will get a full appreciation of it.
Rating: 5
Summary: Poetic, realistic, and true.
Comment: This is the fifth book of the 'Weetzie Bat' stories by Ms. Block. It is really a prequel to the first book, and tells the story of Weetzie's best friend, Dirk. He knows he is 'different' (why is that so feared?) because he likes boys, and he doesn't want to be afraid. He wants to be strong and find someone who is strong, too. But he is unsure of himself. He falls in love with Pup and they are inseparable. They do daring things to show off how brave they are, but Pup is ultimately a coward and, though he loves Dirk, he cannot handle all that involves in such a hate-filled society. Dirk is alone, and his oddysey of discovery and cleansing really begins when he stands up to, and is beaten by, some swastika-wearing skinheads. In his delirium, Dirk meets his dead father, mother, and great-grandmother and they tell their stories to each other. The sharing is healing to them all. We love Dirk for his beauty and heart, and he can love who he is without fear. Duck Drake, who we have met in book one, is looking at the same sky, dreaming of meeting Dirk. This little book is a treasure. Full of poetry and light.
Rating: 3
Summary: Good plot...if only the writing were better.
Comment: The book is about a boy coming to terms with the fact that he is gay. Or rather, that he wishes the world could come to terms with this. Fair enough. But is it too much to ask that a book be grammatically correct and that syntax and diction make sense? Yes, I can understand that dealing with a "different" sexual orientation in a world that is mostly intolerant and abusive is hard, and that there are worse sins than choppy incoherent sentences. And please do both of us (you and me) a favor and do not accuse me of being homophobic, because I am not. Trust me, I am no more merciful than this with heterosexual protagonists.
There are just plain too many teenager-aimed books nowadays that have this sort of choppy, half-conscious, half-delirious, not quite stream of consciousness style (if you can call it that) of writing. It's been done so often, starting from years ago, that it is no longer shocking, surprising, dynamic, breathtaking, etc. It's just bad writing. I'll have to disagree with any of the reviews on this page that say that Block's writing is beautiful imagery or prose, etc. It's not.
There are a great many coming-of-age books that deal with people and sexuality that actually have intelligence and heart, and still manage to have good grammar and sentences that flow logically from one to the next. Read one of those instead.
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Title: Witch Baby by Francesca Lia Block ISBN: 0064470652 Publisher: Harpercollins Juvenile Books Pub. Date: 30 October, 1992 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
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Title: Cherokee Bat and the Goat Guys by Francesca Lia Block ISBN: 0064470954 Publisher: HarperTrophy Pub. Date: 30 June, 1993 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
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Title: Missing Angel Juan by Francesca Lia Block ISBN: 0064471209 Publisher: HarperTrophy Pub. Date: 30 October, 1995 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
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Title: Weetzie Bat (10th Anniversary Edition) by Francesca Lia Block ISBN: 0064408183 Publisher: HarperTrophy Pub. Date: 30 April, 1999 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Girl Goddess #9 : Nine Stories by Francesca Lia Block, Steve Scott ISBN: 006447187X Publisher: HarperTrophy Pub. Date: 28 February, 1998 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
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