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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Block Is A Teenage Fairy, July 15, 2002
I read this book when I was sort of in a slump of mediocre reading. I really wanted something that would hold my attention and pique my senses. VIOLET&CLAIRE did just that. It is the story of two girls who seem very different yet have a similar essence, a quality which ties their fates together. Violet is dark and moody, ambitious and practical; Claire is light-hearted and delicate, innocent and dreamy. Violet dreams of escaping from the mundane life of a seventeen year-old which is her present lot, through making a movie. Claire has images of a secret race of faeries, who are gentle and kind and light as air. She writes poetry. Attracted to Claire's poetic visions and sympathetic to her ostracism from her peers, Violet asks Claire to star in her movie. Things take a drastic turn, shifting dream to reality, when Violet and Claire attend a rock concert and get to go backstage and meet the band's sexy lead singer. Impressed by Violet, the two of them have a fling, and then he gives her his agent's number. Violet soon has a job working for the agent. She finds herself having less and less time for Claire, who pleads with her to come back to her so they can write poetry together. When a sadistic and sudden tragedy occurs, Violet finds that everything she has hoped for is falling into her hands. Yet if this is so, why is she so miserable. Claire, too, is falling apart, and has a fling with an older teacher at a poetry workshop. Ultimately, it is only through vice and destruction, while maintaining a genuine connection and a desire to save one another, that Claire and Violet can find their way back to one another and have ultimate peace. This book starts out in a screenplay format with Violet giving a director's description of how a scene will open. From there, half of it is narrated in Violet's voice, the second half in Claire's. As always, Block proves herself to be glittering and mysterious in her prose. Yet this novel seems to have more plot than some of her others, such as THE HANGED MAN did. Parts are a bit confusing: you will find yourself wondering what really did happen the night Violet went alone to her agent's office to work late. There is a twisting, circular sort of scene where you are wondering did or didn't Claire's poetry instructor have a fling with Violet? The party scenes are dangerous yet great. As always, Block opens herself to the lifestyles of others. VIOLET&CLAIRE is a must-read about friendship, pain, and the true meaning of success. And if you are a Block fan, my only question is why you haven't read this already?
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mezmerizing and Impossible to Put Down, January 20, 2001
Violet & Claire became my all-time favorite book before I was even finished reading it. It's easy to connect with, which I did, on a very deep level. It was like this book was the story of my life, and the absolute description of me--I'm just like Claire, with a Violety edge. I also happen to be a very huge Toriphile (a follower of Tori Amos) and I was so excited when I saw the excerpts from the song Bells for Her! The first part of the book is narrated by Violet. She talks about her passion for screenwriting, and about her life. She's dark, cynical, sarcastic, and different from other people, therefore rejected by all her peers. Then she meets Claire. The second part of the book is narrated by Claire, who is sparkly, poetic, pure, innocent, and honest. She not only believes in faeries, she believes she is a faerie. The third part of the book is narrated in the third person, both Violet and Claire. This book is the story of how their friendship was strong enough to overcome anything. The two girls are almost metaphorical, the two sides of every girl. Every girl has an innocent side and a dark side. Violet is the dark, and Claire is the light. Violet & Claire is classified as Young Adult, and I was a little put off by that at first, but I've come to the conclusion that it doesn't belong there. There was some sex in it, along with bad language, and a few drug issues. In my opinion, that only serves to make the book more realistic, but if you're thinking of getting this book for a younger kid, definitely think twice-- it really should go in the adult section. In short, I would recommend this book to the teenage girl or woman who is not weak at heart.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Oowww...., March 28, 2000
I loved her previous books, although I thought with "I was a Teenage Fairy" she was moving onto thin ice. Alas, with "Violet & Clare" I think the ice is cracking beneath her feet. I was barely able to finish the book, despite its shortness. The plot was boiled, the characters leaden and while Violet and Clare certainly represented the banality of the angst ridden teenager, I don't think that is exactly what Miss Block had in mind. I was so disappointed that I considered returning the book half-read, first time I've ever contemplated such. : < I managed to muster on to the end, but most of the plot has already flown from my mind. All that remains is a sense of disappointment and the feeling that perhaps she needs to write, for once, about girls who are not thin. Also, it might have have just been me, but the Lolita-like cover photo didn't do much for me either.
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