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lattelibrarian's review
5.0
This is probably the most shocking, relentless, and morally ambiguous books I've read all year. And I loved it. When Lu Rile gets an opportunity to make it big--like, really make it big--she wonders whether the payoff would be worth the pain of showcasing a self portrait with her neighbor's son jumping to his death in the background. But how does one exactly bring up that conversation?
Surrounded by others currently "making it" in the art world, it's no wonder that Lu decides to show her painting. She works three jobs. Her neighbors' sole occupations are as artists. To specially print out her photographs, it takes months worth of saving up money. Her neighbors can crank out art supplies and whip out checks like they're worth nothing.
So when she finally gets this opportunity, this horrible, golden opportunity, it's really no surprise. But that doesn't mean that she doesn't lose friendships along the way.
It was simply fascinating to get into Lu Rile's head and to view the world as she views it. Not only that, but I learned so much about art and photography that I never even really thought of before (which was perfect because I coincidentally got to visit lots of museums after reading this!). I'd definitely recommend this to those who like books like My Year of Rest and Relaxation, or who want something that's a little shocking, a little risque, and a little risky.
Review cross-listed here!
Surrounded by others currently "making it" in the art world, it's no wonder that Lu decides to show her painting. She works three jobs. Her neighbors' sole occupations are as artists. To specially print out her photographs, it takes months worth of saving up money. Her neighbors can crank out art supplies and whip out checks like they're worth nothing.
So when she finally gets this opportunity, this horrible, golden opportunity, it's really no surprise. But that doesn't mean that she doesn't lose friendships along the way.
It was simply fascinating to get into Lu Rile's head and to view the world as she views it. Not only that, but I learned so much about art and photography that I never even really thought of before (which was perfect because I coincidentally got to visit lots of museums after reading this!). I'd definitely recommend this to those who like books like My Year of Rest and Relaxation, or who want something that's a little shocking, a little risque, and a little risky.
Review cross-listed here!
ridgewaygirl's review
5.0
There's a particular kind of character who just hits my sweet spot. A woman who makes a lot of bad decisions and ruins her own life is always interesting to read about; after all, what is fiction without conflict and what kind of conflict is more interesting than the stuff people bring on themselves? This novel features that main character. Lu is a young woman living in a terrible loft apartment in a sketchy part of Brooklyn in the nineties, before gentrification. She works at an expensive grocery store that allows her to pay her rent (most of the time) and buy film as she works on becoming a photographer. She is working on a series of self-portraits when it happens, she takes a truly great picture. Lu is sure that this is the key to getting her foot in the door of the art world, but who will she have to hurt to get her chance?
The very act of recall is like trying to photograph the sky. The infinite and ever-shifting colors of memory, its rippling light, cannot really be captured. Show someone who has never seen the sky a picture of the sky and you show them a picture of nothing.
This is a well-written debut novel that really captures a time and place, when if you were willing to live in a run down and rodent-infested space where the landlord is desperate to get people out, you could afford to live in New York. Where your neighbors could be people with serious issues or they could be artists using the space to create art. This is also a wonderful depiction of a person who longs to be an artist, to support herself with her pictures and to find a place within that milieu. I'm eager to read whatever Rachel Lyon writes next, even if it probably won't be exactly this book.
The very act of recall is like trying to photograph the sky. The infinite and ever-shifting colors of memory, its rippling light, cannot really be captured. Show someone who has never seen the sky a picture of the sky and you show them a picture of nothing.
This is a well-written debut novel that really captures a time and place, when if you were willing to live in a run down and rodent-infested space where the landlord is desperate to get people out, you could afford to live in New York. Where your neighbors could be people with serious issues or they could be artists using the space to create art. This is also a wonderful depiction of a person who longs to be an artist, to support herself with her pictures and to find a place within that milieu. I'm eager to read whatever Rachel Lyon writes next, even if it probably won't be exactly this book.
ariannabollens's review
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
sakeriver's review
This book was well-crafted and interesting. I have a hard time reading stories about visual artists, especially photographers—either there will be some lack of verisimilitude that pulls me out or else it’ll be cut too close to the bone. This was the latter, especially because I spend so much time thinking about how and whether my art might hurt the people around me. Still, I read the second half of this in one sitting. It was quite compelling.
beth_diiorio's review
5.0
Intriguing and unique story concept told with a wonderfully engaging writing style. LOVED this book!!! Met Rachel Lyon in person and hope she keeps writing literary fiction! Highly recommend!!! :-)
annetjeberg's review
3.0
This was a strange book. I really disliked the main character, but somehow I really wanted to find out what would happen to her. Of course, nothing really good can come from a self portrait with a boy falling to death.
Different.
Different.
nixieknox's review
3.0
This was a compelling story - the main character was driven and not always nice/thoughtful. She justified everything to herself for the sake of her art, good and bad. Not being an artist it was hard to sympathize with this. I don't want to spoil anything.
I wasn't down with the ghost stuff. But overall, I recommend this.
I wasn't down with the ghost stuff. But overall, I recommend this.
the1germ's review against another edition
5.0
Set in the late 80’s, Lu is a struggling photographer in a rapidly gentrifying artist neighborhood in New York City. While she’s working three jobs, and the building she’s living in is condemned, she hones her craft with a project: A self portrait photograph, every day. It becomes a routine she almost sleep walks through, until the day she shot Self-Portrait #400.
For her 400th self-portrait, she frames herself against the window overlooking the city from her condemned apartment with a breathtaking view. She sets the timer, climbs up the side, and leaps across. When it’s developed, she’s shocked at what she finds in the background: the body of her upstairs neighbor’s son, falling to his death just outside her window.
It’s the best photograph she’s ever taken. A “happy accident” so powerful it could change her life. A career making photograph. It’s the biggest opportunity she’s ever been given. The question is: should she take it?
Self-Portrait With Boy is a haunting exploration of morality vs a desperate artist’s ambition, and the selfishness of the capitalistic elite. How far is too far, in the name of content? What becomes of a person that steals and profits off of another person’s tragedy? What does it make of us, the consumer? Is it worth it, if it saves just one life?
Though it’s set in the 80’s, I found it incredibly relevant and left with a lot to think about.
For her 400th self-portrait, she frames herself against the window overlooking the city from her condemned apartment with a breathtaking view. She sets the timer, climbs up the side, and leaps across. When it’s developed, she’s shocked at what she finds in the background: the body of her upstairs neighbor’s son, falling to his death just outside her window.
It’s the best photograph she’s ever taken. A “happy accident” so powerful it could change her life. A career making photograph. It’s the biggest opportunity she’s ever been given. The question is: should she take it?
Self-Portrait With Boy is a haunting exploration of morality vs a desperate artist’s ambition, and the selfishness of the capitalistic elite. How far is too far, in the name of content? What becomes of a person that steals and profits off of another person’s tragedy? What does it make of us, the consumer? Is it worth it, if it saves just one life?
Though it’s set in the 80’s, I found it incredibly relevant and left with a lot to think about.