- Paperback: 208 pages
- Publisher: Other Press; 1 edition (Aug 18 2009)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1590513169
- ISBN-13: 978-1590513163
- Product Dimensions: 13.7 x 1.5 x 20.7 cm
- Shipping Weight: 240 g
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,435,026 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
“A powerful and extremely disturbing novel… The lyricism of Hester’s astonishingly beautiful and myopic voice is constant, even when the plot becomes terrifying and tragic…. This is an extraordinary, poetic novel that gives as much as it takes...it will also open a door on perception and understanding.”—Blogcritics.org
"A truly haunting tale that readers won’t soon forget, from a compelling, original voice."—Publishers Weekly
"Laguna writes with lyrical economy, and her craft elevates a tale which in its bare outlines seems like sensational tabloid fare...A disturbing story graced by powerful, poetic prose."—Kirkus Reviews
"A truly haunting tale that readers won’t soon forget, from a compelling, original voice."—Publishers Weekly
"Laguna writes with lyrical economy, and her craft elevates a tale which in its bare outlines seems like sensational tabloid fare...A disturbing story graced by powerful, poetic prose."—Kirkus Reviews
Product Description
“The stars shine brightest out of the deepest dark . . .” A child is imprisoned in a house by her reclusive, religious parents. Hester Wakefield has never spoken to another child, nor seen the outside world. Her one possession is an illustrated children’s Bible, and its imagery forms the sole basis for her capacity to make poetic, real-life connections. Her companions at home are Cat, Spoon, Door, Handle, Broom, and Tree, and they all speak to her, sometimes telling her what to do. One day she takes a brave Alice in Wonderland trip into the forbidden outside, at the behest of Handle, and this overwhelming encounter with light and sky and sunshine is a marvel to her. From this moment on, Hester learns that there are some things she cannot tell her parents, and she keeps this secret to herself. Hester buries it among her other secrets, the ones that take place in the shadowy corners of her insular world, and she keeps them all locked inside her as they multiply and grow, waiting until she can find other ways to be free.
One Foot Wrong challenges the boundaries of right and wrong, sanity and madness, love and justice, poetry and life. The story told by Hester is often dark and harrowing, but the affecting impact of her distinctive voice and her way of seeing the world illuminates every page and makes this novel an exhilarating, enlightening and, ultimately, an uplifting and transformative experience.
One Foot Wrong challenges the boundaries of right and wrong, sanity and madness, love and justice, poetry and life. The story told by Hester is often dark and harrowing, but the affecting impact of her distinctive voice and her way of seeing the world illuminates every page and makes this novel an exhilarating, enlightening and, ultimately, an uplifting and transformative experience.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.5 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
You won't have read anything like this before, Sep 4 2011
By dreamlily "dreamlily" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: One Foot Wrong (Paperback)
One Foot Wrong by Sofie Laguna is one of the strangest books I have ever read. As in...I don't think I have ever read a book quite like the way this one is written.It is written speaking in the words and thoughts of Hester, who at the beginning of the book, we are introduced to as a young child. As we travel through Hester's life we see things from her point of view and gather, from the disjointed language, word and imagery of Hester, that she is kept inside the house, forbidden to go outside. In fact, mostly she is kept in the one room as a young child. As she gets older she is given chores to do, and we learn that her parents are eccentric Christians. She refers to her parents as Sack and Boot, and this is the way she talks about other people and items around her. For example she doesn't refer to a door handle as 'the door handle' she refers to it as 'handle' as though you would say someone's name. She is mentally, sexually and psychologically abused through her life, and slowly but surely Hester rebels. She is not allowed in school, and is forced to stay at home. As she gets older, and rebels more, her parents commit her to a mental institution where more unspeakable acts occur and Hester makes a friend who becomes an integral part of the story.
Sometimes I wonder, if Hester had been given a normal childhood, would she be normal? Or still mentally disturbed? Also, I half don't doubt that her parents (especially the mother) were mentally disturbed in some way either. Especially since the mother would take her to the basement downstairs and hoist Hester up like Jesus on the cross as punishment. But I won't give too much more away than that. One Foot Wrong is an extremely interesting read, not only for the content, but for the way it is written.
This would make an excellent read for a book club.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Sweetly Disturbing, Oct 8 2009
By Yolanda S. Bean - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: One Foot Wrong (Paperback)
This was a dark and strange book. In the midst of the horror of Hester's life, her narration was at times oddly, incongruously, beautiful. The limitations of the narrator left some rather important gaps in the story, but in the end, there was surprisingly satisfying closure. It was certainly a unique book and one that almost begs for discussion.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Strange and stunning, Oct 27 2009
By RhodeIsland 1969 - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: One Foot Wrong (Paperback)
First, I want to offer a quote from the novel: "I took the orange piece from Mary's hand. I put it in my mouth and waited for the end of freedom. Orange water jumped through the air as I chewed....The bell rang and we walked back into the schoolroom swallowing orange." The style throughout this compelling novel is like that--lyrical, confounding, at times disturbing, but always consistent. I haven't read anything better than this--the first novel from Australian writer Laguna--in years. I hope more is coming from this wonderful writer.
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