I Was a Teenage Fairy
Francesca Lia Block
HarperCollins
Fiction, YA Fantasy
***
DESCRIPTION: Barbie's mother named her for the plastic fashion doll, and that's what she was raised to be - a vicarious fulfillment of her mom's failed modeling career. Barbie doesn't want to be a model, but can't get past her mother's overwhelming personality and influence. From a young age, she learns to hide her own hopes as she submits to living someone else's dreams. Her only friend is Mab, a pinky-sized fairy queen who appeared in her room one night and hasn't left since. Mab sometimes seems more a figment of her imagination than a real creature, but, despite her frequent mood swings, she's always there when Barbie needs her. As Barbie is further scarred by the world of fashion and the lies she lives with, she needs Mab more than ever if she is to have any chance of escaping her mother's leash and finding her own happy ending.
REVIEW: I have never liked what people do to themselves and others in the name of fashion and fame, which is essentially what this book is about: the terrible things one does (and has done to them) in an industry that's all about superficiality and lack of emotion, essentially a death sentence for any deeper desires. The idea that the kind of world described in this book actually exists in some form is revolting to me. The story is a bizarre mixture of fairies and the dark underside of modeling, but it works somewhat better than other bizarre idea mixtures I've read lately. It ends on a better note than it starts, perhaps too good; after the hellish life Barbie leads, the ending felt fake, like a dream she superimposed on a reality which was much darker. I'd hoped for a bit more in the way of justice for one character. The author weaves in some nice metaphors and imagery, but on the whole the dark deeds cast a pall over the tale, as it ventures into a deceit-filled world of drugs, liquor, sex, and desperation that is completely alien to me. I just don't move in those circles and have never wanted to, so I'm sure some of the story's impact was lost on me.
You might also enjoy:
Faerie Wars (Herbie Brennan, YA Fiction - A boy finds a faerie prince in the garden)
The Artemis Fowl series (Eoin Colfer, YA Fiction - A devious boy genius pits his wits against the underground faerie nation)
Stardust (Neil Gaiman, Fiction - A young man ventures into the world of Faerie to find a fallen star)
Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book (Terry Jones, Fiction - Brian Froud illustrates a tale of pesky fairies)
Magic or Madness (Justine Larabalestier, YA Fiction - A teen girl faces dark family secrets and her own dangerous powers)
The War of the Flowers (Tad Williams, Fiction - A man steps into the faerie world and finds himself at the heart of a brewing war)
Return to Top of Page - Return to Book Review List
Return to Brightdreamer Books Home
Brightdreamer Books is created and maintained by TBW, a.k.a. "Brightdreamer."
E-mail: tbweber AT comcast DOT net. (Remove spaces, replace AT with "@" and DOT with "." - please put "Brightdreamer Books" in the subject line, or your e-mail may be deleted as
spam! Thank you!