The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender in The Under-Hyped Readathon!

Dec 03, 2014 lookingforabura rated it really liked it

Shelves: contemporary

"I found it ironic that I should be blessed with wings and yet feel so constrained, so trapped. It was because of my condition, I believe, that I noticed life's ironies a bit more often than the average person. I collected them: how love arrived when you least expected it, how someone who said he didn't want to hurt you eventually would."

Beautifully written. It delivers lyrical prose and magical-realism kind of story line. I will read the future books from this author! ...more

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Sep 11, 2014 Bettielee rated it it was amazing

I just want to say that this may or may not be YA – that is how it came up on my library feed. Some places, be they stores or libraries, automatically call something YA if it has teenage protagonists. I consider this more for the older range of YA – there are sexual situations and a sexual assault, not that any of it is explicit – just for those that need to be aware of trigger warnings.

This story isn’t like most modern stories – and I’d really like to take my hat off to the publishing company t I just want to say that this may or may not be YA – that is how it came up on my library feed. Some places, be they stores or libraries, automatically call something YA if it has teenage protagonists. I consider this more for the older range of YA – there are sexual situations and a sexual assault, not that any of it is explicit – just for those that need to be aware of trigger warnings.

This story isn’t like most modern stories – and I’d really like to take my hat off to the publishing company that printed it for stepping outside the “three acts and a twist” box. This is like an old story, where before they tell you the story, they tell you the history of those in the story, going back to great-grandparents, who came over from the old world. Most of the story takes place between the two world wars and a little after. A lot of people may not have patience for this type of beginning – it is a slow, gentle beginning, full of beautiful language but not all difficult to read, and I really suggest you bear with it if that sort of thing isn’t your preference. It’s not a lot of dialog and plot development in the beginning, it’s giving you background and telling you a story, almost like a family member would. I really enjoyed it.

This is probably the first book I’ve read where I can call it magical realism and not sneer. Usually, that is just a snobby way of saying fantasy. I have little patience for people who think so badly of genre they have to call it by another name when they read it. But it is a book about a girl named Ava Lavender who was born with wings, of course it’s magical, of course it’s fantasy…but the story isn’t about figuring out how she got the wings, why she got the wings, the world’s not in danger because of her wings, the wings simply are. So what is the story about? The story is about family and tragedy – but it’s mostly about love.

It seems like each generation of Ava’s family (remember, we start with great-grandpa) has a tragic history with love. Each generation is more heartbroken than the last. It takes the premise of love and shows how it can make things: two people can make a life of their own, through marriage, or making babies or businesses to take care of those lives and babies. Also, the destructive and damaging side of love, even how love can transform people, for better or worse, and sometimes, the transformation is literal. A lot of it focuses on obsessive love and the levels to which it can form or destroy someone’s life.

Ava is the focus character – of course, though her family plays a big part. She was born with wings, as I said, but as everyone seems to forget, she was not the only child born that day. She has a brother, Henry, who at first, is only remarkable in his silence. He doesn’t cry. As he grows up, he doesn’t speak, but he makes the most perfect maps, and shows flashes of psychic insight. They live with their mother, Vivianne, and grandmother in a dollhouse type Victorian with as colorful a past as the one they came from and the one they are making. Due to their mother’s romantic disappointment and fear of rejection, the twins and their mother live in the solitude of their house, with their grandmother who can see spirits and owns a bakery, and resident gentle giant, Gabe, who is a boarder in their house, handyman, and hopelessly in love with Vivianne. Sadly, she is still in love with the twin's father and he is not in the picture. Then another figure enters the scene: a pious nephew of a neighbor comes into town and he forms an obsessive love of his own.

This reminded me a little of Chocolat (or the movie Like Water for Chocolate – if that is a book, I haven’t read it) and to a lesser degree, Salmon Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children (I am not comparing the book to those works, I am just saying it felt a touch like them, it has small elements that are similar, don’t be offended or say I’m crazy, I know Midnight’s Children is an untouchable epic to some people). However, this book is far more accessible. I know a lot of readers, especially younger readers, don’t have patience for beautiful language, but the style of this is so easy to read and I think if you are an action adventure person, if you give this a chance it could be that gateway book that encourages you to read beyond plot. And that is no dig at plot driven books – a lot of those also have deep themes and symbolism but people don’t always read for that or think about those things. If you don’t believe me, watch Thug Notes about The Hunger Games on Youtube. I thought I read that book pretty critically but Dr. Sparky Sweets showed me real truths.

Anyway, can’t say enough good about this book. There’s a lot of romance, some of it sad and tragic, it’s a historic setting but it feels very modern. Strongly recommend this one.

started as alibrary book and then I bought a copy ...more

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Jan 21, 2017 Tracey rated it it was amazing

Shelves: own-copy, 2017

There is so much grief in this book, it has burrowed straight into my heart and left me with a deep impression.

FULL REVIEW SOON

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Dec 26, 2014 BirdiesBookshelves rated it it was amazing

Shelves: books-i-own, favorites

This book was stunning. A modern fairy tale with incredible characters and a whimsical storyline. It was absolutely magical.

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Dec 28, 2015 Belle rated it liked it

Shelves: books-read-in-2016, expected-more-or-disappointing

I feel like I need to state that first and foremost this is a good book, a great book even but this book is not for me. Walton has wonderful control of language, creating beautiful prose and a magical atmosphere. Her world is rich with color, food, scents and perfect scenery. It's stunning and for that I enjoyed it. Loved every bit of the descriptions especially the bakery, just filled me with joy.

My inherent problem with this book was the unlikable female characters. This is a generational sto I feel like I need to state that first and foremost this is a good book, a great book even but this book is not for me. Walton has wonderful control of language, creating beautiful prose and a magical atmosphere. Her world is rich with color, food, scents and perfect scenery. It's stunning and for that I enjoyed it. Loved every bit of the descriptions especially the bakery, just filled me with joy.

My inherent problem with this book was the unlikable female characters. This is a generational story so our narrator, Ava, tells us the tale of her family starting with her grandmother, Emilianne whose family immigrates from France to New York. The Roux family is a peculiar one and in magical realism style they all have ridiculous deaths right out of a Tim Burton movie. Emilianne decides early on her life that she will be unhappy because so much has happened and her heart was broken by a silly man so henceforth Emilianne succeeds in being as unhappy as she can be which of course made me want to shake her. She eventually moves with her husband, that she doesn't love, to Seattle where the rest of our story takes place. Viviane is born and her father dies when she's in infant leaving Emilianne to tend the bakery he had and raise baby Viviane.

Viviane became to me one of the most annoying characters. She falls in love with a boy, becomes a teen mom and he leaves her and from that point on Viviane is as determined to be as unhappy as her mother was. I think my inherent problem with these characters was the portrayal of women and how women, once scorned by a man or left, became emotionally comatose to the point of being unable to find happiness in themselves. That was my irk. It wasn't the storytelling, it was nicely paced, the language like I said was painted beautifully but these women were so frustrating to me. They reached Bella-level of uselessness at the disappearance of their lover and this took my enjoyment out of the book.

Ava's story was far better but it's minuscule in comparison to Viviane's much lengthier one. I dare say the male characters were more fleshed out and complex than the women. Nathaniel was horrific in his obsession, Gabe was wonderful he truly kept me going through some of the worse Viviane moments and even Jack's father was a surprising twist despite still being despicable. I know and I fully understand that many people will love this and I can understand why, the prose is stunning. I think you should give it a try, form your own opinion and perhaps you might enjoy it more than I did. ...more

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