Related Subjects: Author Index
Book reviews for "Lai,_Larissa" sorted by average review score:

When Fox Is a Thousand
Published in Paperback by Raincoast Book Dist Ltd (1995)
Author: Larissa Lai
Amazon base price: $14.95
Used price: $24.23
Average review score:

Fascinating style, perfectly written!
I was almost put off by the three different voices narrating this book, but it was easy to read from the first page. The characters are so interesting, you will want to read it all at once. It is very woman-focused and addresses issues of sexuality and ethic identity in a low-key way that does not take away from the story.

beautiful, engrossing, got to love the fox.
This book is the epitome of excellence, the characters are intriguing, especially the fox. The use of 3 voices is just phenomenal. Read this book.

A well-written journey into other dimensions and Vancouver
This must one of the most remarkable and readable magical-realism books ever written in English. In her part-mystery, part-historical novel, part- fantasy, Ms Lai manages to lead us in and out of different dimensions without the slightest degree of confusion. I was never a fan of this genre but have become entranced with this skilfully and delightfully-written work, which uses fantasy to teach us to look at ethno-cultural identity and belonging in a new way. Chapeaux off to Press Gang for a fine production job, with a delightful icon-in-the-margin trick to save the innocent reader from confusion.


Salt Fish Girl
Published in Paperback by Thomas Allen & Son Ltd (2002)
Author: Larissa Lai
Amazon base price: $2.95
Average review score:

magic realism or science fiction?
This tale is an inventive mix of chinese myth, science fiction, lyrical dream and biotech nightmare. Laden with themes of love, birth, reproduction and transformation, Salt Fish Girl can be read on many levels -- its a rich text and there is a lot going on in this short novel. Now in some places, I felt Lai becomes seduced by her own talents of imagery, and the narrative flags while she describes say, the colour of pearls, or the mood of the ocean, but that's a minor problem. And as a former Vancouverite, I also appreciated the book's run-down Pacific edge of the future setting.
Worth reading and worth reading again, I think.


Related Subjects: Author Index

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