Customer Reviews

The Dreaming Girl

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Roberta Allen's poetic narrative draws the reader into the dream that is fiction. With vivid, terse descriptions, she takes us to Belize and into the brief affair between two travelers (referred to as the girl and the German). For example, about the German in the beginning of the affair, Ms. Allen writes: "When he looks at her, he thinks of a necklace breaking. He thinks of beads spilling, rolling, scattering in all directions. He tries to gather her together with his eyes." And about the girl, Ms. Allen writes: "She feels as though she knows him, but she only knows her dream. If she didn't have her dream of the German, she would lose herself: she would be like water in his hands." As the affair unfolds, Ms. Allen explores the boundaries not only between these two travelers, but also the boundaries between individuals, those between people and nature, and those between reality and illusion. How do we and can we transcend the solitary being that we all are? The Dreaming Girl is beautiful, unique, and in its quietness, powerful.

This novel is no less than an evolution of the "novel form". There is not one word on the page that is superfluous. Ms Allen's <The Dreaming Girl> is concise; deeply provocative, probing and highly satisfying. This novel explores and transgresses the boundaries between lust and love, the body and memory, fantasy and reality. A girl of twenty-one meets a German man while traveling in Belize. Together and apart, their bodies, minds, and memories confront the jungle of life that surrounds them. Ms Allen's narrative is deeply hypnotic; this is a journey that as a reader you will not forget.

This unusual book, written in a minimalist style, conveys broad themes, emotions and imagery and succeeds in inducing a kind of pleasant reverie in the reader. While not for everyone, this books offers a great deal to the reader who is willing to drift with its dream-like and poetic prose. It is highly recommend.

This unusual book, written in a minimalist style, conveys broad themes, emotions and imagery and succeeds in inducing a kind of pleasant reverie in the reader. While not for everyone, this books offers a great deal to the reader who is willing to drift with its dream-like and poetic prose. It is highly recommend.

roberta allen challenges the very art of storytelling with her sparse evocative style and compelling tale. The dreaming girls is hard to put down. it's a pleasure to read modern literature that challenges conventional fictional structure without becoming self serving. truely a magnificent achievement!

I am very excited about THE DREAMING GIRL by Roberta Allen and want to share this extraordinary book with as many readers as possible. In today's market, as readers of good literature know, it is hard to find real gems, and THE DREAMING GIRL is a rare one. It is a must read for lovers of books and I urge you all to avail yourself of a copy ASAP.