ivyldc 's review for:

Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino

5.0

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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My final book of 2024. Beauty land is the story of Adina Giorno, a girl who believes she is an alien from the young age of 4 years old. She communicates with the light being of her home planet by fax machine. She sends her observations on human existence and they reply. She lives with her single mother, Terese in a working class neighborhood across from Auto World and it’s floppy tube man. The story is of her observations from birth through mid 40’s in chronological order. She has so much insight into life, yet is ultimately so lonely it is heart breaking. 

I didn’t think I would have another 5 star read in 2024, but I am glad to have finished this. It is so beautiful and mysterious in so many ways. I can’t wait to explore Marie-Helene Bertino’s short stories.