Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties: A Novel [Hardcover]

Felicia Luna Lemus (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 8, 2003

Leticia Marisol Estrella Torrez, a university honors graduate, moves north to Los Angeles in an attempt to break from the traditional grandmother who raised her and from Weeping Woman, the Mexican folkloric siren who is said to fly through the skies at night to steal troublesome children and who has courted Leticia since her adolescence.

In Los Angeles, Leticia is quickly immersed in the post-punk, post-Queer hipster scene, and after a short-lived affair with the devastating Edith, Leticia meets K, a tall, dark and handsome Old Spice-wearing lovely from Philadelphia. K and Leticia tumble into "candy heaven" bliss, with, to Leticia's amazement, her nana's blessing. As her confidence in herself and her own sexuality grows, Leticia moves toward an identity that K refers to as "shy bookworm sweater femme boy"-- only to have her newfound happiness brutally shattered by Nana's sudden illness and by the disturbing discovery that K is not as trustworthy as she seems.

Vividly wrought, heart-breaking and compelling, Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties is a wonderful debut from Felicia Luna Lemus.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Lesbian grrrls enjoying the gritty splendors of Los Angeles are the protagonists of this edgy, exuberant debut novel. Leticia Marisol Estrella Torrez is a young woman in her early 20s valiantly trying to find her place in a world of queers living life on their own terms, even if it means breaking with the traditions of her past. Leti's conventional grandmother raised her to be a proper young Mexican-American woman, but Leti is seeking more excitement and freedom. With "shaved head and stomping boots, my adolescent dyke dick hard all the time," Leti crashes the dyke scene while treading more sedately around her grandmother and dreaming of Weeping Woman, a dangerous, seductive figure from Mexican folklore who haunted her childhood. As she careens through the hipster punk world of Southern California, Leti bounces from girlfriend to girlfriend, learning some valuable lessons the hard way. The enticing women she meets are described in fabulous, over-the-top prose: "My girl Edith: smarty-pants Mission District glamour homegrrrl moved down to Los Angeles on her leopard-print motorcycle." And then there is K, "candy heaven," who battles for Leti's heart along with the inscrutable shade of Weeping Woman. The sex is fun, rollicking and a little bit dangerous; the characters are young and guardedly optimistic. Lemus's enthusiasm bubbles over at times, and her flights of poetic fancy are sometimes wobbly ("taking time like starlight in slow motion"; "I got scared by how lemon-lime Otter Pop her toes could get"), but this is an intriguing novel sure to attract readers searching for something urban, lively and a bit different.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The breezy tone of Lemus' gen-X coming-of-age story keeps one flipping pages, even when its gay heroine, Leticia, a film-school grad who grooms dogs in L.A. rather than face the rigors of a professional career, suffers debilitating loss and heartbreak. Family, blood-related or acquired, and the "Nana" who raised her, in particular, are central to her life, as is also the mythic Weeping Woman, a Hispanic icon whose presence throughout is by turns threatening and comforting. Only when she is at her lowest, grieving dual losses, does "Let" come to terms with the duality of Weeping Woman and her cultural attachment to the icon--a development parallel to her coming to accept the duality of her Anglo-Hispanic and lesbian identity. Engagingly told in quirky English reflecting Let's speech (e.g., "The static crackle jangle of my voice hummed warm reliable"), this story of ultimately strong friendships charms enough to earn its first-time author an early following. Whitney Scott
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; First Edition edition (September 8, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374278563
• ISBN-13: 978-0374278564
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,403,170 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yummy, May 26, 2004

By 

Lorrye (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties: A Novel (Hardcover)

Rarely do I take the time to right a review for books. Most follow the same hum drum scenerios. Though this one follows the ole "grrl finds grrl" bases, the voice of the author was quirky, colorful and left me praying I didn't get to the end of the book any time soon. I'll be scanning bookstore shelves for up and coming titles from this wonderful author. Bravo Ms Lemus!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Non-Random Talent Shines, June 21, 2004

By 

Daniel Olivas (West Hills, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties: A Novel (Hardcover)

With her debut novel, Felicia Luna Lemus treats us with a story filled with corazon and a deceptively easy style. Her protagonist, Leticia Marisol Estrella Torrez, is a young Angeleno who struggles to blend her lesbian life with that of her traditional Mexican-American family. Funny, soulful and heartbreaking, this is a fine novel that establishes that the personal is often political. I hope this is the beginning of a long writing career for Felicia Luna Lemus.

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Magical Coming of Age Story, November 12, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties: A Novel (Hardcover)

This is a story of a Mexican-American young woman leaving her grandmother's traditional ways and becoming her own person. Even though the specifics of this novel include "coming out," and coming to terms with "dyke identity," this novel's protagonist more importantly works toward learning to be comfortable with her cultural history.

The language is fluid, changing to suit the story, from lush, descriptive and tender to snappy and tough. It was a real page-turner. I can hardly wait for her next novel!