Further Out Than You Thought

June 2, 2014
The prize-winning poet Carter’s striking debut novel depicts 1992 Los Angeles around the time of the Rodney King riots, following aspiring writer–turned–stripper Gwendolyn Griffin, her deadbeat pot-smoking boyfriend Leo, and their mutual friend, HIV-positive crooner Count Valiant. At the outset of the story, the trio lives in a decaying, roach-infested complex called the Cornell. They are each poised for metamorphosis: Gwen has learned that she is pregnant, Leo is planning an absurd publicity stunt, and Count is mentally preparing for the end of his life. The brutality of the riots convinces them to leave the city: “That’s what you did when your city was burning, the city in which you’d lived and dreamed and loved; that’s what you did when you had just this night.” They embark on an impromptu road trip that forces them to confront hard truths about themselves and map out the future. Carter’s lyrical writing and cast of characters resonate with the backdrop of a city in flames. Agent: Melissa Kahn, 3 Arts Entertainment.

June 15, 2014
In the midst of the 1992 LA riots, a conflicted exotic dancer shambles toward an epiphany about adulthood.This debut from award-winning poet Carter is an unexpected gift. The story of a stripper, her stoner boyfriend and their dying neighbor as they try to survive the Rodney King riots is not a pretty tale, but it's told well. The author infuses her period piece with shades of post-punk cynicism and the caustic, abandon-all-hope vibe of the grunge years while drawing characters who fit well into the book's gritty ambiance. Our entree into this sordid world is Gwen, a girl your mother would like, a graduate student and aspiring poet who came to Los Angeles seeking adventure. Unfortunately, she finds herself playing "Stevie," a mechanically erotic nude dancer at the Century Lounge. She's no pawn, and Carter goes to great lengths to show how Gwen owns her sexuality but also that it's a means to an end. Gwen genuinely loves her boyfriend, Leo, a self-described performance artist who dresses as a Revolutionary War soldier-not to busk, but to hock his crappy music demos. Their superqueer neighbor, Count Valiant, adds not only to the ensemble, but also the period vibe, as he's living, quite dramatically, with AIDS. As Gwen finds she's pregnant, Leo, living out his Peter Pan arc, decides to march into East LA waving a flag of surrender and dragging his reluctant girlfriend behind him. "That's what you did when your best friend was dying and your boyfriend was planning a stunt that, were he to follow it through, could get him arrested or beaten or killed the very next morning," Carter writes. "That's what you did when your city was burning, the city in which you'd lived and dreamed and loved; that's what you did when you had just this night." Poetic but rarely uplifting, Carter's novel is a fable for those who remember the bad old days.Hard choices for an unconventional heroine who wants the magic in her life to be real, not illusory.

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July 1, 2014
Three self-involved Angelenos find themselves jolted out of their complacency by the riots that follow the Rodney King verdict in 1992. At 25, Gwendolyn enjoys the freedom and money she gets from stripping at a seedy club while nursing her dreams of becoming a writer. She lives with her boyfriend, Leo, an aspiring musician whose strategy for getting his work heard involves dressing up in costume and playing on a street corner. The couple's friend and neighbor, Count Valiant, is dying of AIDS and almost never leaves his apartment. Just after Gwen discovers she's pregnant with Leo's child, the Los Angeles riots begin, and Leo concocts a preposterous plan to walk the streets naked, carrying a white flag. Gwen and Valiant decide the answer to all their problems is to abduct Leo and flee to Tijuana. As Gwen struggles with how to tell Leo she's pregnant, she begins to reevaluate her choices and plan for her future. Poet Carter's first novel is a beautifully written snapshot of a moment in time and one young woman's coming-of-age.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)