Violet & Claire

Violet & Claire
by Francesca Lia Block

Violet & Claire
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Book Summary Information

Author: Francesca Lia Block
Edition: Paperback
Published: 2000-10-31
ISBN: 0064472531
Number of pages: 176
Reading Level: Young Adult
Publisher: HarperCollins

Book Reviews of Violet & Claire

Book Review: Brief, predictable, but some interesting imagery
Summary: 4 Stars

The brevity bothered me a bit, and a bit of the predictability, but it was engaging in the difference of the way it was written. Based on two girls, the first section is written by Violet, in first person, but with camera cues. The second section is written by Claire, in the form of a journal, again in first person, while the story concludes with a third-person look at Violet & Claire. It explores friendship, ambitions, attaining dreams and falling from them and relationships, though I suppose I would have wished a bit more development. Claire's fascination with the faerie and how she relates to them (ostracized from the developing human world) is a nice touch of fantasy and ethereal thinking, whereas Violet sees the world as a story.

Summary of Violet & Claire

Francesca Lia Block has gained a tremendous following writing stories about the young denizens of Los Angeles that are simultaneously ethereal and utterly tangible. Titles such as The Hanged Man, Dangerous Angels, Girl Goddess #9, and I Was a Teenage Fairy explore the heaviest issues facing teens--including all variety of sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll--with the light touch of skillful poet. In Violet and Claire, Block once again exposes us to both the best and the worst of the City of Angels, as we trace the rise and fall of a female friendship from thrilling expectations to soul-squelching excess.

Set against the glittering background of Hollywood, Block's work has long been marked by an intensely visual style, so it is perhaps appropriate that this story opens like a screenplay: "FADE IN: The helicopter circles, whirring in a sky the color of laundered-to-the-perfect-fade-jeans. Clouds like the wigs of starlets--fluffy platinum spun floss." The script theme continues with chapter subheadings such as "EXT: HIGH SCHOOL QUAD--DAY" and "INT: LIMO--NIGHT" while teenage wannabe filmmaker Violet and gossamer-winged poet Claire take turns telling their story. Everywhere Violet is dark, Claire resonates light. And as they make the arduous journey toward adulthood by way of the silver screen dream, it is this essential oppositeness that both draws the two together and drives them apart. Luckily, there's a Hollywood ending for the yin-yang duo, "the photo negative of each other, together making the perfect image of a girl." (Ages 12 and older) --Brangien Davis


This is the story of two girls, racing through space like shadow and light. A photo negative, together they make the perfect image of a girl. Violet is the dark one, dressed in forever black, dreaming Technicolor dreams of spinning the world into her very own silver screen creation. Claire is like a real-life Tinker Bell, radiating love and light, dressing herself in wings of gauze and glitter, writing poems to keep away the darkness. The setting is L.A., a city as beautiful as it is dangerous, and within this landscape of beauty and pain Violet and Claire vow to make their own movie. Together they will show the world the way they want it to be, and maybe then the world will become that place--a place where people no longer hate or fight or want to hurt. But when desire and ambition threaten to rip a seamless friendship apart, only one thing can make two halves whole again--the power of love.

Francesca Lia Block's latest novel is a beautifully told story that boldly combines the world of film with the lyrical graceful language of poetry. The voices of two friends--one dark, one light--combine to tell a larger tale of love and loss, and the strength that comes from believing in dreams.

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