The Girls in Curious Iguana

Jul 10, 2016 Liz Matheny rated it really liked it

There's good reason why Cline and The Girls have received so much acclaim over the last few months. This is a solid summer read where the characters are grossly captivating and the pages turn fast. However, make sure you read this with the lights on. The plot is deeply haunting, and rightfully so, as it fictionalizes the Manson Family and their ranch in the hills outside of San Francisco. Cline's writing is haunting and fluid. I very much enjoyed her metaphors and turns of phrases--the pages rea There's good reason why Cline and The Girls have received so much acclaim over the last few months. This is a solid summer read where the characters are grossly captivating and the pages turn fast. However, make sure you read this with the lights on. The plot is deeply haunting, and rightfully so, as it fictionalizes the Manson Family and their ranch in the hills outside of San Francisco. Cline's writing is haunting and fluid. I very much enjoyed her metaphors and turns of phrases--the pages really flew by. At one point I found myself up until 12:30 in the morning reading this and forced myself to put it down and go to sleep.

The story of Evie, a 14-year-old girl, from a wealthy, but broken home, is attracted to Suzanne and a sense of belonging that she cannot otherwise find in her dull, privileged life. Since this book is a fictionalized account of the Mason ranch and Mason murders of August 1969, there are many historically accurate events that unfold throughout the book. For example, Evie's life of privilege and longing are common traits amongst most Mason followers. This book is one part craving a sense of belonging and meaning, one part a young girl trying to understand her sexuality, and one part a woman's fear of the unknown as she tries to move forward in her life. It jumps between life without the Manson family, life on the ranch, and life afterwards.

That said, there are a few scenes that are trigger-warning worthy.

Russell (Charlie) is hyper sexualized as we might assume any young girl might view him. However, the very detailed sexual encounters that Evie has throughout the book are written at length in almost an uncomfortable manner. Although Cline doesn't harp on Evie's age, we know she's only 14.

There's an uncommon maturity that Cline projects on Evie that I don't think is very realistic for a sheltered 14-year-old, but I let it slide because the prose is so tight.

When I finished the book, I noticed that Cline acknowledges Bill Clegg's support. I can see how Clegg, author of Did You Ever Have a Family, had a strong editorial or organizational role in the craft of this book. Not that it wholly similar to DYEHAF, but there are whispers that bring these two books together in tandem for me. (BTW: If you haven't read Did You Ever Have a Family, do it! So good!) ...more

Like · see review

Feb 03, 2016 Lauren rated it liked it

Shelves: fiction-historical-fiction

Yet another novel built up on wide publicity that fell flat.

While the idea was sound and made the book sound interesting, the plot was exceedingly slow moving and boring. You knew from the beginning something major had occurred to make the protagonist leave the commune and make the other girls infamous, but almost 3/4 of the way through, almost no headway has been made as to how and why this event occurred.

The novel was written as though you were was in through the story in a haze, maybe makin ...more

Like · see review