Scan barcode
A review by alexandriaslibrary
Dead in Long Beach, California by Venita Blackburn
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Grief isn’t linear and is often messy, jarring, backwards, and disorienting. In her true experimental sensibility, Blackburn’s debut novel is unlike anything else.
Coral discovers her brother’s body and begins to use his phone. But while this seems like a thriller, it’s a very internal and philosophical look at grief and the human condition. Coral is the author of a semi-popular dystopian graphic novel Wildfire and her narrators of the series (a first-person plural omniscient entity) is the narrator of the entire book. Flashbacks, excerpts from Wildfire, musings on humanity, and Coral’s week following her brother’s death—weave together harmoniously to the end.
Also, as someone from Long Beach California, this book is a beautiful ode to an oily, salty city!
Coral discovers her brother’s body and begins to use his phone. But while this seems like a thriller, it’s a very internal and philosophical look at grief and the human condition. Coral is the author of a semi-popular dystopian graphic novel Wildfire and her narrators of the series (a first-person plural omniscient entity) is the narrator of the entire book. Flashbacks, excerpts from Wildfire, musings on humanity, and Coral’s week following her brother’s death—weave together harmoniously to the end.
Also, as someone from Long Beach California, this book is a beautiful ode to an oily, salty city!