Newly arrived at her brother's home in 1960s Los Angeles, teenager Jordan Lerner struggles to deal with her brother's terminal illness, her mother's dalliances with a string of men, and a school where she is considered an outcast
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
The accomplished Braverman's ( Palm Latitudes ) latest work seems destined to draw unfavorable comparisons with Mona Simpson's Anywhere but Here . Like Simpson's novel, it concerns a girl whose feckless young mother uproots them both to California in search of fame and fortune; however, Braverman's plotting is stale and heavy-handed. Jordan is only 10 when Roxanne (nee Ruth) plans their escape from a middle-class existence in 1960s New Jersey, choosing her brother Louie's home in Los Angeles as a destination. The car trip bodes ill--Roxanne is forced to pawn her possessions when she can't locate her targeted hosts along the way; Roxanne and Jordan are reduced to sleeping in their car; the eponymous Wonders of the West, billed as a tourist attraction, is a thudding letdown. Braverman splices scenes from this trip into Jordan's account of her senior year in an L.A. high school, where she is flunking five subjects despite her 157 IQ, while Roxanne, now posing as Jordan's sister, scrounges for movie studio work and hunts for a sugar daddy. Louie and his wife have indeed taken them in, but Louie is ill with cancer and their apartment is part of a depressing complex reserved for hospital patients and their families. Braverman's prose style is characteristically incisive and her observations both witty and unsparing, but these talents barely justify this sadly predictable excursion.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
In her own voice, 17-year-old Jordan Lerner details her meager existence with a terminally ill uncle and his wife in early 1960s Los Angeles, then relives a harrowing cross-country trek with her neglectful mother. Braverman's lyrical fourth novel, which follows Squandering the Blues ( LJ 9/1/90) and Palm Latitudes ( LJ 6/1/88), demonstrates why she was twice nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in poetry. But even as readers dreamwalk with Jordan through her lush garden of description, they may grow weary of hacking away at the overgrowth. In addition, Jordan's eventual steps toward liberation are not totally convincing for a young woman beset with Cold War fears and an unusually high level of angst and apathy. Hasn't Jordan already learned before that the "wonders of the West" may be illusory? For literary collections.
- Faye A. Chadwell, Univ. of South Carolina Lib., Columbia
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
FREE
Within U.S.A.
Shipping:
US$ 4.00
Within U.S.A.
Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Missing dust jacket; Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.95. Seller Inventory # G0449906566I3N01
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Fair. No Jacket. Readable copy. Pages may have considerable notes/highlighting. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.95. Seller Inventory # G0449906566I5N00
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: SecondSale, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. Item in good condition. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00067322929
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: St Vincent de Paul of Lane County, Eugene, OR, U.S.A.
Condition: Acceptable. Hardcover 100% of proceeds go to charity! Acceptable reading copy with obvious signs of use, wear, and/or cosmetic issues. Item is complete and remains readable despite notable condition issues. Seller Inventory # J-05-4546
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Irish Booksellers, Portland, ME, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. SHIPS FROM USA. Used books have different signs of use and do not include supplemental materials such as CDs, Dvds, Access Codes, charts or any other extra material. All used books might have various degrees of writing, highliting and wear and tear and possibly be an ex-library with the usual stickers and stamps. Dust Jackets are not guaranteed and when still present, they will have various degrees of tear and damage. All images are Stock Photos, not of the actual item. book. Seller Inventory # 31-0449906566-G
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Tacoma Book Center, Tacoma, WA, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. First Edition. ISBN 9780449906569. Hardcover copy in very good condition with very good dustjacket. Tight solid copy, looks like it was only read once. Clean unmarked copy. First Edition. Dustjacket included. PR 27-8 1. Seller Inventory # 2003992
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Books From California, Simi Valley, CA, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. Signed. First Edition. First ed, stated, full numberline. SIGNED by author on title. Minor shelf wear. Pages/boards/jacket clean. Seller Inventory # mon0003227801
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Joe Staats, Bookseller, Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Fine. 1st Edition. Author of PALM LATITUDES and LITHIUM FOR MEDEA. Fine, first edition, first printing, in fine, mylar-protected dust jacket. {Not remainder-marked or price-clipped} L96. Seller Inventory # 9107
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Chaparral Books, Portland, OR, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. First Edition. Minor shelf wear to binding. Light wear & soiling on edges of text block. Inscribed by author on title page. Dj lightly shelf worn with light toning & small scuffs. Dust jacket in a mylar cover. Signed by Author. Seller Inventory # JCOSbraWON
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: GoldenDragon, Houston, TX, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: very good. Very Good Copy. Fast Shipment. Seller Inventory # SilverDragon0449906566
Quantity: 1 available