Artful and "Dangerous" Recommendation from Katie S.

Francesca Lia Block opens her vivid young adult fairy tale with the wishes of four young people to love one another and be a family together. Weetzie Bat, our heroine, gathers them all about her in the first volume of the "Dangerous Angels" opus, and young queer readers will surely find a sanctuary in the comforting descriptions of love and acceptance that Block's eccentric characters share.

Block's novel is a luscious treat for the queer, artistic, exotic, avante-garde readers
of young adult fiction. To give one an idea of her writing style, I'll pull out the introduction of her chapter entitled "Shangri-L.A." for examination:

"Weetzie and My Secret Agent Lover Man and Dirk and Duck and Cherokee and Witch Baby and
Slinkster Dog and Go-Go Girl and the puppies Pee Wee, Wee Wee, Teenie Wee, Tiki Tee and
Tee Pee were driving down Hollywood Boulevard on their way to the Tick Tock Tea Room for
turkey platters."

I read this book for the first time when I was in high school--attending a school for the arts--and the characters were so vivid and real to me, as they lived the true message of art out in their lives. Block has created such far-out, yet earthy and compassionate beings that immediately demand one's emotional investment.

And for someone who is discovering their essence and the unique imprint that they will make on the world, the "Dangerous Angels" saga is a welcome traveling companion.