Little Beauties: A Novel - Dark Publications

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
The lives of three characters -- an obsessive-compulsive, a pregnant teenager, and the teen's unborn child -- come together in National Book Award finalist and Pushcart Prize winner Kim Addonizio's unsparingly funny and transcendent debut novel.

Diana McBride, a thirty-four-year-old former child pageant contender, now works in a baby store in Long Beach. Between dealing with a catastrophic haircut, the failure of her marriage, and phone calls from her alcoholic mother, Diana has gone off her OCD medication and is trying to cope via washing and cleaning rituals. When pregnant teenager Jamie Ramirez enters the store, Diana's already chaotic world is sent spinning.

Jamie can't stand being pregnant. She can't wait to get on with her normal life and give the baby up for adoption. But her yet-to-be-born daughter, Stella, has a fierce will and a destiny to fulfill. And as the magical plot of Little Beauties unfolds, these three characters' lives become linked in ever more surprising ways.

With a poet's ear for fresh, evocative language and a deft humor that exposes her characters' foibles, Addonizio perfectly captures the messiness and unexpected beauty of life.

Customer Reviews: Read 8 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars

Beautiful story July 29, 2005
10 out of 12 found this review helpful

Kim Addonizio proves that she's not just a great poet, but also a stunning storyteller in this tale of two women and their challenges and their mothers. I could have lived without the baby's voice chapters, which seem way too precious, but the on target descriptions of a woman living with obsessive compulsive disorder and her "rules" are completely fascinating.

5 out of 5 stars

A Beautiful novel and a brave, smart first book from Addonizio August 13, 2005
9 out of 13 found this review helpful

It's funny to read some of the reviews of this novel. People seem so afraid and judgemental of the baby voice, but to me it is what ties the novel together. It is NOTHING like "Look Who's Talking." Instead of taking the easy shallow route with the baby, Addonizio looks deeper. The baby does not read as a device, but rather as a fully developed character with wants and needs. Stella is the hub of the book, bringing these unusual characters together. Addonizio also nails the pregnant teenager with an honesty that rings true to any woman who went through adolescence in the last 25 years. Diana, the woman with OCD, is a fascinating character explored with dark humor and compassion. Little Beauties was a delight to read and for a poet known for her dark cutting honest poetry, her novel is a fresh lively funny book proving Addonizio can write on both ends of the spectrum.

And I would like to add, as a woman, that I resent the "lifetime" comment. Just because something deals with women's issues does not make it cheesey.

5 out of 5 stars

Poetic Princess Primes her Pumps August 4, 2005
6 out of 13 found this review helpful

Little Beauties is a marvel. I cried when OCD main character Diana took Eva's earring (taken from the contaminated floor of her bathroom, no less) and put it in her ear. Anthony waiting downstairs with a picnic of roasted chicken for the dusty desert is a stroke of genius. Addonizio's poetic storytelling is gut wrenching and truthful. The honest playfulness of her language makes me want more.

4 out of 5 stars

Beautiful story August 15, 2005
6 out of 12 found this review helpful

Little Beauties was one of the most enriching and worthwhile books I've read in a very long time. I was drawn in from the first paragraph, and I finished it in a day and a half, barely being able to part with it.

Addonizio seems to know her characters inside and out. Reading Diana's passages were at times both funny and aching. I could practically feel the fear and indecision that Jamie experienced as a torn girl-turned-mother. And Stella's passages were thoroughly enchanting, although sometimes a little over-the-top. Even the secondary character of Anthony was written richly and with so much care.

I look forward to reading Addonizio's next novel.

3 out of 5 stars

a well-written Lifetime movie-type story August 13, 2005
5 out of 13 found this review helpful

I wouldn't have expected a Lifetime movie story from Addonizio, having read her stories and poems before. (Lifetime movie means, like, women are problem-plagued victims, men suck, except for the one guy who saves the girl, predictable/happy ending etc...) That disappointment aside, it's nicely written, particularly the initial character with the washing compulsion. I did wish Addonizio would have had the confidence to stay with that point of view, and that someone had pointed out to her that talking/thinking babies summon up that bad Kristie Alley TV show with the talking baby.

So, a light recommendation only, for a book with a great start that doesn't hold your interest as much later on.

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