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Pretty Little Dirty (Vintage Originals)

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Pretty Little Dirty (Vintage Originals) Cover

ISBN13: 9781400096824
ISBN10: 1400096820
Condition:
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Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Lisa sees the life of her gorgeous best friend Celeste as just about perfect: she has a gigantic house, two older sisters to coach her through the hazards of high school, and loving, lively parents. As Lisa's own home has long been a place devoid of joyful noise — her mother has shut herself off in her bedroom for years — Lisa joins the Diamond household, slipping into their routine of sit-down suppers and soaking in the delicious normalcy of Diamond family life. But what begins as the story of two young women living a charmed adolescence, one of mastering dance moves and the protocols of male-female interaction, soon swirls into an intoxicating novel of art, music, and self-destructive impulses as Lisa and Celeste dare each other ever onward.

Review:

"This is the fictional equivalent of the highlight reel from the Girls Gone Wild videos....All the debauchery feels a bit forced, but the girls' intense, symbiotic bond is drawn with precision." Booklist

Review:

"A coming-of-age story that never quite comes into its own....Page by page, an evocative collection of scenes, but taken as a whole, a frustratingly incomplete work." Kirkus Reviews

Review:

"[A] great beach read for an 18-year-old who cares more about sunscreen than Daniel Defoe....Boyden is poetic with her prose, without being purple, and her short sentences read like stab wounds, puncturing opportunities for pretense." San Francisco Chronicle

Review:

"Pretty Little Dirty takes a classic coming-of-age tale and turns it inside out, then gives it a few kicks in the head for good measure. Funny, sexy, inventively told, and scary as hell — a gutsy debut." Dani Shapiro, author of Family History

Review:

"Boyden cracks open the vulnerable world of the adolescent girl today. Racy, dangerous and very captivating, Pretty Little Dirty paints a hypnotic portrait of two girls spinning perilously out of control." Colleen Curran, author of Whores on the Hill

Review:

"Amanda Boyden's white-hot prose surprises and scorches the reader with her disarming candor about sexual hunger, friendship compromised by envy, and ambition lacking focus." Fredrick Barton, author of A House Divided, winner of The William Faulkner Prize

Synopsis:

In this dazzling debut novel, Boyden takes readers into a girlhood friendship so tightly knit that where one girl leads, the other can't help but follow.
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About the Author

Born in Northern Minnesota, Amanda Boyden grew up, the eldest of three daughters, in Chicago and St. Louis. Currently she teaches in the English department of the University of New Orleans. Previous positions include elderly companion, artist's model, gutter cleaner, dishwasher, science lab assistant, cancan dancer, tutor, stuntwoman, and bit part actress. Until recently, Amanda worked as a contortionist and professional trapeze artist. She proudly lists hanging high over the heads of Galactic and 311 in her life accomplishments.

She is married to Canadian author Joseph Boyden. Pretty Little Dirty is her first novel.

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What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 3 comments:
eye11gal, May 14, 2007 (view all comments by eye11gal)
this book started out very well, the description was wonderful and it seemed to have a lot of potential.
and you begin to find yourself holding on so tight, and as the story progresses no matter how dissappointing it turns out to be you have to finish it. as you let go of this story, unwrap your fingers from around its spine, you realize what is wrong with it. it leaves you empty. that is the best word to describe it. EMPTY.
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maeash, January 12, 2007 (view all comments by maeash)
i dont get intrested in books at all, but when i started reading this i couldnt put it down. i loved it so much.
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amanda1222, May 10, 2006 (view all comments by amanda1222)
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I could not put it down. The dark tone and blatant disregard for morale captivated me. The writing is real and raw. I love the fact that Boyden illustrates the consequences of one's actions and the reprocussions that follow. I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to escape the typical romantic novel and shift to an in-your-face tale of adolescence.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9781400096824
Author:
Boyden, Amanda
Publisher:
Vintage Books USA
Subject:
Literary
Subject:
Young women
Subject:
Loss (psychology)
Subject:
Middle west
Subject:
Historical fiction
Subject:
Literature-A to Z
Copyright:
2006
Edition Description:
Trade paper
Series:
Vintage Originals
Publication Date:
March 2006
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Pages:
432
Dimensions:
8.04x5.28x.93 in. .70 lbs.
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Related Subjects

Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z
History and Social Science » American Studies » Popular Culture

Pretty Little Dirty (Vintage Originals) New Trade Paper
0 stars - 0 reviews
$14.50 In Stock
Product details 432 pages Vintage Books USA - English 9781400096824 Reviews:
"Review" by , "This is the fictional equivalent of the highlight reel from the Girls Gone Wild videos....All the debauchery feels a bit forced, but the girls' intense, symbiotic bond is drawn with precision."
"Review" by , "A coming-of-age story that never quite comes into its own....Page by page, an evocative collection of scenes, but taken as a whole, a frustratingly incomplete work."
"Review" by , "[A] great beach read for an 18-year-old who cares more about sunscreen than Daniel Defoe....Boyden is poetic with her prose, without being purple, and her short sentences read like stab wounds, puncturing opportunities for pretense."
"Review" by , "Pretty Little Dirty takes a classic coming-of-age tale and turns it inside out, then gives it a few kicks in the head for good measure. Funny, sexy, inventively told, and scary as hell — a gutsy debut."
"Review" by , "Boyden cracks open the vulnerable world of the adolescent girl today. Racy, dangerous and very captivating, Pretty Little Dirty paints a hypnotic portrait of two girls spinning perilously out of control."
"Review" by , "Amanda Boyden's white-hot prose surprises and scorches the reader with her disarming candor about sexual hunger, friendship compromised by envy, and ambition lacking focus."
"Synopsis" by , In this dazzling debut novel, Boyden takes readers into a girlhood friendship so tightly knit that where one girl leads, the other can't help but follow.
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