Weetzie Bat

Author: Francesca Lia Block
Publishing Info: Harper Collins, 1989
Suggested Reading Level: Grades 10 and up

Synopsis:
Weetzie Bat is a young adult living in Los Angeles and loving everything that could be called a Hollywood cliché. She is different than everyone at school: she wears Indian headdresses or taffeta dresses with poetry written on them in glitter just to name a few things that make her stand out. Her parents no longer live together (it never says whether they are actually divorced or not); she lives with her mother in LA; her father lives in New York city, but he comes to visit her as often as possible. She obviously loves both of them, even though they are flawed and probably addicts to one substance or another. One day Weetzie meets Dirk and the two of them quickly become best friends. After a while, Dirk reveals to her that he is gay and she is totally accepting of that. She says they can hunt “ducks” together. Dirk lives with his grandmother and Weetzie becomes very attached to her. Right before the grandmother dies, she gives Weetzie a “treasure” which ends up being a magic lamp with a genie and everything. She wishes for a “secret agent lover man” for herself, a perfect “duck” for Dirk, and a home for all of them to share. The wishes are granted, but it isn’t all a happy ending.
Grandma dies and gives the cottage she owns to Dirk and Weetzie and they eventually meet My Secret Agent Lover Man and Duck (those are their names). They all start making movies together and become underground successes. After they’ve been together for a while, Weetzie wants to have a baby, but My Secret Agent Lover Man is scared. When Weetzie finds out she is pregnant, he runs away, but Dirk and Duck promise to help her raise the baby. He does end up coming back and the house is happy again until Weetzie’s dad dies of an overdose in his New York apartment. They all mourn together, but Duck is affected the most. He feels his own mortality and goes away so he doesn’t have to hurt any more. Dirk goes out and finds him and in the end, they all live happily together in the cottage in LA.


Analysis:
Although I had mixed feelings throughout the book about whether to suggest this to young adults, I think I came out on the affirmative. It touches on a lot of controversial topics, like gays and alternative living and raising babies with more than one father. It touches on addictions and overdosing and relationships out of wedlock. The think I like most about the book was her style of writing. It reminds me of Jack Kerouac in that it’s very impressionistic and love centered. Kerouac writes more stream-of-consciousness than Block however. I would consider this for curriculum because all of the issues brought up in the book are issues that students will have to deal with in today’s world and because Block doesn’t present the ideas with a “this is good” and “this is bad” attitude, it would be perfect for initiating discussions about making choices and forming opinions among other things. It also would be a great book for teaching symbols, voice, style, and plot. There are 4 more books in this series and I am excited to check them out!