Psyche in a Dress by Francesca Lia Block

I'd heard a lot of great things about this book before I read it, so when I started reading and didn't immediately see the draw I was kind of disappointed. It wasn't bad by any means, but it wasn't fantastic. As I got closer to the end, however, and the different aspects of the story started coming together for the final conclusion I really thought to myself, this is a really good book.

The writing style is some kind of poetic, stream of consciousness, almost dreamlike approach that allows the reader to take in the information a different way than if it were presented normally. You almost want to pause over the information to make sure you're taking it in correctly. The author doesn't knock her self out with punctuation for most of the book. If there's supposed to be a period or a comma she just skips down to the next line and continues on, but it wasn't hard to read because of this, it just adds to the mood she's trying to create.

The basic premise of the story is that there is this girl who lives out Greek myths in the modern day. She is psyche predominately, but after she looses Eros she goes through different phases and meets different people and becomes other mythological figures, which the author uses to describe different stages of life.

From the book, kind of near the end, but don't worry you won't know how it's relevant until you read it

I have been young too
I have been Psyche, I have been Echo
I have been Eurydice
I have been Persephone, like you
I thought I was not a goddess
My mother was a goddess
Now I am Demeter, like my mother
Because of you

Reading that kind of sums up the book, and when you tie in what the author creates around these myths, its kind of touching. A lot of time is spent on the details which makes the story more than just a plot, and in every part of the book we are told what dress psyche is wearing. I'm not much into fashion so I can't tell you if the dresses she wore at certain times were significant to the plot, but in the beginning the dresses are her mother's and by the end i think she gets one of her own.

Anyway, Psyche learns to stand on her own, exist by herself, which is a nice ending. And if you know your myths there won't be any real surprises in plot, maybe in execution, but that why it's interesting right? Great read.