ANDROMEDA KLEIN
Frank Portman
Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Fiction
ISBN: 9780385735254
432 pages
Andromeda Klein's physical problems are nothing compared to what is going on with her psyche. According to Andromeda's mom, she was born with osteogenesis imperfecta, and that is why her bones are brittle and she has severe hearing problems. She also despises her slight, boyish figure and the taunts that go with it.
In more urgent matters, her partner in the occult, "Twice Holy Soror" Daisy Wasserstrom, succumbed to her leukemia, dying when Andromeda was off on vacation with her difficult mother and her father (whose prescription meds don't always keep his paranoia at bay). To add insult to sorrow, her love interest, dubbed St. Steve (when she misheard him say he was "sensitive"), has evidently abandoned her. Andromeda's life now centers on her spiritual life --- her frequent tarot card readings, the spells she casts alone, her studies of occult literature, her significant dreams, and her reverence for occult master A.E. Waite.
Andromeda is lonely in spite of her higher plane activities. Daisy's mother has banned her from their house and their family. She has also purged their house of most of Daisy's belongings, but Andromeda plies Daisy's younger brother with girlie magazines for any Daisy gleanings he can find. Andromeda has a strong feeling that Daisy is trying to connect with her from the other side. She frequently catches Daisy's scent and discovers tremendous magical coincidences (or "synchs") that seem to indicate Daisy is nearby and attempting to communicate.
Andromeda also has her off-the-wall friend Rosalie van Genuchten, who throws drug-and-alcohol saturated "Afternoon Teas." Rosalie is given to unusual creative solutions to problems, such as driving her car all over town in reverse when there's a mechanical problem keeping it from moving forward. Rosalie's bizarre matchmaking practices regarding Andromeda bring to mind the saying "with friends like these, who needs enemies?" So when Rosalie tricks Andromeda into meeting up with the very short Byron, with his weird wisp of a beard (and his reputed male tramp stamp), Andromeda dismisses him nearly on sight, despite his eager hopefulness to learn more about "Magick" from Andromeda (who hates the word "Magick" and strongly prefers "occult"). Byron piques her interest very slightly, though, when she discovers he is interested in a type of rock music that synchs with Andromeda's spiritual beliefs.
Meanwhile, Andromeda frequently checks her cell phone(s), hoping for messages from St. Steve while dodging constant badgering messages from her mother. Just as she is giving up hope, she begins to hear from him again, but in such a cryptic manner that she is bewildered. While puzzling over St. Steve, attempting to contact Daisy and dreaming about the mysterious "King of Sacramento," Andromeda also must battle an unforeseen enemy: the Friends of the Library, who appear to be out to destroy her literary spiritual enlightenment at the branch in which Andromeda works part-time.
ANDROMEDA KLEIN is a totally new direction from author Frank Portman's previous novel KING DORK. This latest book is dense with obscure, sometimes complex, occult references, which may boggle those who are not knowledgeable about the history and theory of the occult. However, once patient readers have persevered, they are likely to become engrossed in Andromeda's story, which --- much like that of the KING DORK protagonist --- makes for a lively, hilarious, realistic and quirky read.
--- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon (terryms2001@yahoo.com)
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