Pain in love is the Roux family birthright. For Ava Lavender, a girl born with the wings of a bird, it is key to her fate.
Ava traces the lives and loves of the Roux women as she tries to understand what has made her who she is and what she will become. On the night of the summer solstice, the skies open up, rain and feathers fill the air and Ava's fate is revealed.
THE STRANGE AND BEAUTIFUL SORROWS OF AVA LAVENDER by Leslye Walton
Published: 2014
Genre: YA Fantasy Fiction. Magical Realism.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
There is no way I can describe this book without repeatedly indulging in the words strange and beautiful since they do it such incredible justice. The title was aptly chosen.
Ava Lavender (to abbreviate a long and intricate title) by Leslye Walton, is a dark, delving investigation into what it truly means for a woman in the Roux family to love deeply and entirely, and what it costs them. "Love makes us such fools." The affects of their heartbreak reveal themselves through physical traits. It can turn you into a yellow canary, or a fading ghost of the person you once were; it can cause you to carve out your own heart so as never to be troubled by it again. It can cause you to enter a loveless marriage to avoid even the possibility of such tragedy. "Emelienne silently promised to be good to her husband as long as he didn't ask for her heart. She no longer had one to give."
The magical realism of this book is potent and irresistible. It combines the impossible, the improbable and the actual into a uniquely dark and haunting tale, interwoven with beautiful articulate language and a sense of foreboding that climaxes at the end of the book on the day of the summer solstice.
This generational saga is told from Ava's perspective, beginning by recounting the circumstance of her birth, later remembered for the peculiar affect it had on the birds. Then delving into her family tree, unravelling the general misfortune of the Roux family before her, but stopping to focus on the lives of Emelienne Roux (Ava's grandmother) who married Connor Lavender. Their daughter Viviane Lavender (Ava's mother) before finally returning to Ava herself, and her twin brother Henry, who was born without wings but remains mute for much of his life.
The characters in between are real and colourful, whether they appear throughout the book or merely live their life on a single page. Each one's significant, and fascinated me, in most cases even more so than Ava herself - who interestingly wasn't my favourite character, despite being the centre of the story.
There is so much beauty and innocence in this book, and to delve into it too deeply is to spoil it for those as of yet unenlightened by this heart wrenching tale. But there is sorrow too, as the title suggests, which is what makes it feel real and well rounded, despite it's obviously fictional genre.
As always, I recommend this book thoroughly. I am only sorry I haven't relayed my admiration for this author before now. I first read this book last year, though it was the author Leslye Walton's first novel and was published in 2014. I have a tendency of finding beautiful books long after they're written, but I believe I find them at precisely the right time and therefore enjoy them more.
The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender is a YA fiction that I know anyone would enjoy from teens to adults. Please indulge in this unusual story and pass it on if you enjoy. Spread the gospel of incredible literature!
Until next week, find me across social medial Zuzu's Pages on Instagram Zuzu's Pages on Facebook Zuzu's Pages on Twitter for more updates of books, and writing!
Zuzu 🖋
Ava Lavender (to abbreviate a long and intricate title) by Leslye Walton, is a dark, delving investigation into what it truly means for a woman in the Roux family to love deeply and entirely, and what it costs them. "Love makes us such fools." The affects of their heartbreak reveal themselves through physical traits. It can turn you into a yellow canary, or a fading ghost of the person you once were; it can cause you to carve out your own heart so as never to be troubled by it again. It can cause you to enter a loveless marriage to avoid even the possibility of such tragedy. "Emelienne silently promised to be good to her husband as long as he didn't ask for her heart. She no longer had one to give."
The magical realism of this book is potent and irresistible. It combines the impossible, the improbable and the actual into a uniquely dark and haunting tale, interwoven with beautiful articulate language and a sense of foreboding that climaxes at the end of the book on the day of the summer solstice.
This generational saga is told from Ava's perspective, beginning by recounting the circumstance of her birth, later remembered for the peculiar affect it had on the birds. Then delving into her family tree, unravelling the general misfortune of the Roux family before her, but stopping to focus on the lives of Emelienne Roux (Ava's grandmother) who married Connor Lavender. Their daughter Viviane Lavender (Ava's mother) before finally returning to Ava herself, and her twin brother Henry, who was born without wings but remains mute for much of his life.
The characters in between are real and colourful, whether they appear throughout the book or merely live their life on a single page. Each one's significant, and fascinated me, in most cases even more so than Ava herself - who interestingly wasn't my favourite character, despite being the centre of the story.
There is so much beauty and innocence in this book, and to delve into it too deeply is to spoil it for those as of yet unenlightened by this heart wrenching tale. But there is sorrow too, as the title suggests, which is what makes it feel real and well rounded, despite it's obviously fictional genre.
As always, I recommend this book thoroughly. I am only sorry I haven't relayed my admiration for this author before now. I first read this book last year, though it was the author Leslye Walton's first novel and was published in 2014. I have a tendency of finding beautiful books long after they're written, but I believe I find them at precisely the right time and therefore enjoy them more.
The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender is a YA fiction that I know anyone would enjoy from teens to adults. Please indulge in this unusual story and pass it on if you enjoy. Spread the gospel of incredible literature!
Until next week, find me across social medial Zuzu's Pages on Instagram Zuzu's Pages on Facebook Zuzu's Pages on Twitter for more updates of books, and writing!
Zuzu 🖋
A beautiful review for this book, which is indeed a strange but lovely tale xx
ReplyDelete