New Releases by Francesca Lia Block

People pity me, but mostly they feel envy. I have all the luxury and freedom a girl my age could want. Something is happening to Charlotte Emerson. Like the fires that are ravaging the hills of Los Angeles, it consumes her from the inside out. But whether it is her eternal loneliness, the memory of her brother, the return of her first love, or the brooding, magnetic Jared—she cannot say. What if it''s something more . . . Something to do with the sudden tear in her perfect nails. The heat she feels when she''s with Jared. The blood rushing once again to her cheeks and throughout her veins. For Charlotte is a vampire, witness to almost a century''s worth of death and destruction. But not since she was a human girl has mortality touched her. In what way will you be transformed? Until now.

Navigating the world of dating can be like wandering an enchanted forest, full of creatures with peculiar habits and baffling behavior. In Wood Nymph Seeks Centaur, Francesca Lia Block provides a guide to this often-treacherous terrain, classifying all those mystifying men and women into various types of mythical forest fauna-Fauns and Werewolves, Mermaids and Banshees. After answering questions to determine your own type, you can learn to identify others-with the help of illustrations from artist Fumi Nakamura. By reading up on the various types'' favorite activities, likely professions, sexual preferences, and parenting styles, you''ll gain insight into compatible creatures. If you''re a Wood Nymph (like Block), you could get your heart broken by a fickle Satyr, but if you can track down the strong, soulful Centaurs of the forest, you just might be on the path to true love. Clever and insightful, Wood Nymph Seeks Centaur is an invaluable guide for any dating creature.

The Weetzie Bat series, by acclaimed author Francesca Lia Block, was listed among NPR''s 100 Best-Ever Teen Novels. This collection brings together all five luminous novels of the series in one. Spinning a saga of interwoven lives and beating hearts, these postmodern fairy tales take us to a Los Angeles brimming with magical realism: a place where life is a mystery, pain can lead to poetry, strangers become intertwined souls, and everyone is searching for the most beautiful and dangerous angel of all: love. The Weetzie Bat books broke new ground with their stylized, lyrical prose and unflinching look at the inner life of teens. The New York Times declared Dangerous Angels was "transcendent." And the Village Voice proclaimed "Ms. Block writes for the young adult in all of us." Includes Weetzie Bat, Witch Baby, Cherokee Bat and the Goat Guys, Missing Angel Juan, and Baby Be-Bop.

When Bee woke up, there was a girl standing in her room. "You are me," the girl said. Then she was gone. I am a thirteen-year-old double Gemini. I get bad grades, write poetry with my left hand, dance in my room, surf the net. I Google images of the tattoos my mom won''t let me get. . . . But my world belongs to someone else. Someone who lives below the concrete of Los Angeles, someone with wild eyes and twigs in her hair. And I think she wants her life back.

“[Francesca Lia Block] is the sorceress of iridescent language.”—Kirkus Reviews Open Letter to Quiet Light will make readers feel as if they are peering at secret writings meant for the eyes of a lover alone, but these carefully crafted lines somehow transcend the personal to touch everyone who has experienced this kind of consuming, wrenching love. In these fiercely passionate, devastatingly revealing, sometimes spiritual, and often painful poems, Francesca Lia Block describes in fiery detail the rise and demise of a year-long love affair. Her rich use of language infused with the power of sex and spirit finally paint a transcendent, almost mythic portrait of the way two wounded people—both searching for connection—find each other, collide, and eventually separate. The words seem to bleed onto the page and even the most graphic moments have a devotional quality filled with nuanced expression and unbridled intimacy. Francesca Lia Block is renowned for her groundbreaking literary works, including the best-selling Weetzie Bat. Her writing transports readers through the harsh landscapes of contemporary life to realms of the senses where love is a saving grace. She lives in Los Angeles.

Acclaimed author Francesca Lia Block weaves pure magic into this deftly constructed tale殮e girl′s path to womanhood told in linked short stories. Written in her uniquely poetic, carefully crafted style, Echo is a tour-de-force from one of our most exciting contemporary writers. Ages 11+

Two darkly magical Weetzie Bat stories about the search for self from Francesca Lia Block: Missing Angel Juan and Baby Be-Bop.

Two magical-realist coming-of-age Weetzie Bat stories from Francesca Lia Block: Witch Baby and Cherokee Bat and the Goat Guys.

Meet Tweetie Sweet Pea and Peachy Pie, Jacaranda and Rave and Desiree... Meet Lady Ivory and Alabaster Dutchess, who interview their favorite rock star, Nick Agate, only to discover the magic and power in themselves. Meet Tuck Budd, who is happy living in Manhattan with her two moms, Izzy and Anastasia, until she begins to wonder who her father is. Meet La, who faces the loss of her mother with an imaginary androgynous blue friend who lives in her closet. Zingingly bright and dreamily dark, full of wonder and gritty reality, these stories by acclaimed author Francesca Lia Block show the reader that in every girl there truly is a goddess. The cutting-edge author of Weetzie Bat once again breaks new ground with Girl Goddess #9, nine stories about girl goddesses of every age and shape and color and size, wearing combat boots and spiky hair or dressed all in white. One girl has two moms, another has no mother at all but a strange blue skinned creature that lives in her closet. One is a rock star groupie, another loves dancing and reading poetry and having picnics in the backyard when the moon is full. These are stories about girls discovering that the world is not a simple place and that there is more than one way to live''all in Ms. Block''s rich, lyrical language that fans have come to adore and that Sassy magazine called ‘a dream.''

The author of the critically acclaimed, award–winning Weetzie Bat books offers a compelling celebration of the first year of her child''s life. Guarding the Moon chronicles the joys and terrors of motherhood, from the early stages of the author''s pregnancy through her baby''s first birthday. This unique but far–reaching story makes for a gem of a book.

Lonely City A tangly-haired, purple-eyed girl named Witch Baby lives in glitzy L.A. She loves a guy named Angel Juan. When he leaves for New York she knows she must find him. Looking For Love So she heads for the city of glittery buildings and garbage and Chinese food and drug dealers and subways and kids playing hip-hopscotch. Finding Trouble Her clues are an empty tree house in the park, a postcard on the street, a mannequin in a diner. Angel Juan is in danger, and only Witch Baby''s heart-magic can make him safe. When Angel Juan leaves L. A.—and Witch Baby—to play his music and find himself in New York, Witch Baby, wild and restless without him, follows. The story that ensues "is an engagingly eccentric mix of fantasy and reality, enhanced—this time—by mystery and suspense. It is also magical, moving and mischievous, and—literally—marvelous."—SLJ.

What shall we do, all of us? All of us passionate girls who fear crushing the boys we love with our mouths like caverns of teeth, our mushrooming brains, our watermelon hearts? What''s real is what''s imagined in nine tales of transformation by Francesca Lia Block.

“[Francesca Lia] Block writes about the real Los Angeles better than anyone since Raymond Chandler.”—The New York Times Book Review “[Block] uses language like a jeweled sword glittering as it cuts to the heart.”—Kirkus Reviews After enduring from afar a seemingly endless series of outside worldwide disasters—including 9/11 and the Asian tsunami—while living in earthquake-prone Los Angeles, a bereft Katrina experiences deep inner longings for some sense of permanence, meaning, and intimacy. A preschool teacher contemplating the unsettling challenges of her mid-life, she finds solace in the company of her dear friend Grace, and conflict in the arms of a narcissistic yoga instructor, Jasper. In this intertwining series of emotionally charged stories, wistful characters weave together a dance of joy and sorrow, gain and loss, harmony and dissonance. Beautifully written, Quakeland speaks in a deeply stirring female voice to an unspoken sense of universal longing that seems quietly prevalent in these times. It is a brave, poetic work that acknowledges the pain and loss we live with every day, and offers hope—through art and through connection—of something more. Francesca Lia Block is renowned for her groundbreaking novels and stories, including the best-selling Weetzie Bat—postmodern, magic-realist tales for all ages. Her work transports readers through the harsh landscapes of contemporary life to magic realms of the senses where love is always a saving grace. She lives in Los Angeles.

Where were the kisses? Weetzie Bat wondered. And so begins a magical journey of discovery. As she turns forty and the relationship with her secret-agent lover-man Max falls apart, Weetzie packs up her lime green and bright orange bikini, orange suede sneakers, and Pucci tunic, jumps in her ''65 mint green Thunderbird, and leaves. Weetzie finds herself at the enchanted pink hotel in sparkling Los Angeles, where she once shied away from a kiss that may have led her to the love of her life. Now she returns, perhaps in search of her lost passion, and meets an otherworldy cast of characters, among them a blue-skinned receptionist, an invisible cleaning lady, a seductive fawn, and a sushi-eating mermaid who gives her a kiss that sets the wheel of self-discovery in motion. Block invests every scene with equal shots of magic and realism, rendering her heroine and supporting players in vivid, poetic detail. In Necklace of Kisses the fans that have grown up with Weetzie Bat will be able to meet her in adulthood and find that life is still no less trying and no less full of wonder.

A tragic but ultimately life-affirming love story from the acclaimed author of "Dangerous Angels" is now in paperback.

From the very moment she was born, Primavera''s songs made water flow and flowers blossom. She brought new life to the desert where her family lives. But even in Paradise there are dreams that cannot be fulfilled. Primavera is in love with a man who can never be hers--so when a handsome stranger offers her the gift of a horse-headed motorcycle, Primavera leaves home in search of the magical city of Elysia. But in Elysia, Primavera discovers that she has left behind everything she truly needs, everyone she truly cares about--and, if the city has its way, she will never find her way back home.

Millions of viewers have enjoyed the black humour and the skewed but perceptive wisdom of The Sopranos. This is the official guide to the language, philosophy and street wisdom of the world''s most famous mobster family.

Denne boken er satt sammen av to bøker rygg mot rygg. "Baby Be-bop" handler om Dirk, som bor sammen med bestemoren Fifi. Dirk vokser opp med kunnskapen om at han er homofil, men har problemer med å fortelle det til omgivelsene. Han lever i et ''nesten-virkelig? Los Angeles, ShangriLA, med mye homo-hets og strenge normer for akseptert oppførsel. Et fortvilet ungdomsopprør med punkefrisyre og selvfornektelse ender med en magisk reise i familiens historie og en endelig aksept av seg selv og sin egen legning. Boken er en forhistorie til "Weetzie Bat", og en viktig del av syklusen. "Angel Juan" er den siste boken i syklusen. Hovedpersonen er Voodoobaby, et av Weetzie Bats barn. Hun reiser til New York for å finne kjæresten Angel Juan som har forlatt ShangriLA for å finne seg selv. Voodoobaby reiser i et mystisk, skremmende og farlig landskap. Til hjelp har hun Charlie Bat, spøkelset til Weetzies far, som går igjen i den gamle leiligheten på Manhattan. Dette er den mørkeste av bøkene rundt Weetzie Bat, og et oppgjør med kjærligheten og de båndene vi prøver å knytte rundt de vi elsker. Voodoobaby finner først det hun leter etter når hun aksepterer at Angel Juan må finne sin egen vei, og at han må selv ville komme tilbake til henne. Begge bøkene er preget av det samme poetiske, nyskapende og originale språket som de andre bøkene om Weetzie Bat. Oversettelsen til Elisabeth Bjørnson er svært god og har klart å overføre et spennende språklig uttrykk til norsk uten at poesien har gått tapt.

With language that is both lyrical and distinctly her own, Francesca Lia Block turns nine fairy tales inside out. Escaping the poisoned apple, Snow frees herself from possession to find the truth of love in an unexpected place. A club girl from L.A., awakening from a long sleep to the memories of her past, finally finds release from its curse. And Beauty learns that Beasts can understand more than men. Within these singular, timeless landscapes, the brutal and the magical collide, and the heroine triumphs because of the strength she finds in a pen, a paintbrush, a lover, a friend, a mother, and finally, in herself. Best Children''s Books 2000 (PW) Books for the Teen Age 2001 (NYPL)

La quatrième de couverture indique : Elles ont douze ou quinze ans, elles vivent à Los Angeles, à Manhattan, ou peut-être en face de chez vous. Elles s''appellent La ou Tuck, parfois elles se sont choisi elles-mêmes des surnoms étranges. pendant que vous dormez, que vous allez au lycée, que vous téléphonez à votre meilleure amie, elles vivent leur vie, une vie différente. L''une d''elles a deux mamans et part à la recherche de son père. Une autre a de longues conversations avec une petite créature qui vit dans son armoire et qui s''appelle Bleu, et cela va lui sauver la vie. Une troisième collectionne les bonnes notes et passe ses nuits avec des rockers et personne, pas même le garçon qui l''aime, ne pourra l''empêcher de mourir. Chacune des héroïnes de ce livre a une histoire particulière, parfois dure et violente. Elles n''ont peut-être rien de commun avec vous, et pourtant, elles vous ressemblent comme des soeurs.