Pink Smog: Becoming Weetzie Bat

Pink Smog, the long-awaited prequel to Francesca Lia Block's groundbreaking novel Weetzie Bat, was praised as "an intoxicating mix of mystery, fantasy, and romance" by ALA Booklist in a starred review. Weetzie Bat is one of the seminal young adult novels of the '90s and continues to be an iconic treasure for teens everywhere. Now Pink Smog reintroduces a whole new generation to the eponymous Weetzie Bat—before she was Weetzie. Against the backdrop of a Los Angeles teeming with magical realism, Louise Bat struggles to find a way to deal with life after her father's unceremonious departure.

Longtime fans and newfound readers alike will fall in love with Francesca Lia Block's beautifully crafted and brutally honest world. Maggie Stiefvater, New York Times bestselling author of The Raven Boys, proclaimed "Pink Smog sparkles and obscures; it's a glorious mirage, like the city it pays homage to."

“Magnificent.” Village Voice

“Sparkling.” Publishers Weekly

“Shimmering.” New York Post

“One of the most original books of the last ten years.” Los Angeles Times Book Review

CRITICAL ACCLAIM for WEETZIE BAT and the DANGEROUS ANGELS collection:“Transcendent.” New York Times Book Review

“An intoxicating mix of mystery, fantasy, and romance told in her signature poetic style and peopled by guardian angels, witches, a goddess, and a demon.” Booklist (starred review)

“Newcomers and longtime fans alike will find much to savor in this nuanced meditation on what is lost, and what is gained, in the process of becoming an artist.” Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Pink Smog sparkles and obscures; its a glorious mirage, like the city it pays homage to.” Maggie Stiefvater, #1 New York Times bestselling author, for the New York Times Book Review

“Teens... will relate to the heroines universal feelings of being on the fringe. Louises uplifting example proves that only from the outside can one forge her own true path.” Shelf Awareness

“This canny introduction to Weetzie is the perfect prep.” Bulletin of the Center for Children & #8217;s Books

The girl in the mirror wasnt who I wanted to be, and her life wasnt the one I wanted to have.

Despite how much Louise insists, no one will call her Weetzie. Its her dads nickname for her, but it wont stay put. Neither will her dad. Charlie left Louise and her mom and he took everything with him: her family, her home—and her understanding of who shes meant to be.

But Los Angeles is a city full of strange angels, and Louise embarks on a journey to sift through the smog of her heartbreak, to grow her own wings, to become Weetzie.

Francesca Lia Block, winner of the prestigious Margaret A. Edwards Award, is the author of many acclaimed and bestselling books, including Weetzie Bat; the book collections Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books and Roses and Bones: Myths, Tales, and Secrets; the illustrated novella House of Dolls; the vampire romance novel Pretty Dead; and the gothic werewolf novel The Frenzy. Her work is published around the world.