Lola in the Mirror - Trent Dalton

Lola in the Mirror

Author: Trent Dalton

Puntuación: 4.5
4.5
De 648 Valoraciones

Welcome to Lola in the Mirror! A book full of exciting adventures, valuable lessons, and unforgettable characters that will captivate readers of all ages. Immerse yourself in the pages of this book and let yourself be carried away on a unique journey full of mystery, romance, action and fantasy. Discover a world full of possibilities and learning that will make you reflect, laugh and get excited. Lola in the Mirror invites you to discover a universe of fascinating stories that will accompany you throughout your life. Don't miss the opportunity to enjoy this literary experience that will fill you with joy and wisdom!

Description

Bighearted, gritty, magical and moving, Lola in the Mirror is the irresistible new novel from international bestselling author of Boy Swallows Universe and All Our Shimmering Skies, Trent Dalton.

SHORTLISTED FOR 2023 DYMOCKS BOOK OF THE YEAR

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2024 INDIE BOOK AWARDS

'Unpredictable, fantastic ... It takes a charged narrative, like Dickens achieves, and as Dalton does too, to reach the heart and the brain - writing that is able to carry both stories, the individual and the political/personal ... To tell you more would spoil this complicated and surprising story. You should read it.' Sydney Morning Herald

'Mirror, mirror, on the grass, what's my future? What's my past?'

A girl and her mother have been on the run for sixteen years, from police and the monster they left in their kitchen with a knife in his throat. They've found themselves a home inside a van with four flat tyres parked in a scrapyard by the edge of the Brisbane River.

The girl has no name because names are dangerous when you're on the run. But the girl has a dream. A vision of a life as an artist of international acclaim. A life outside the grip of the Brisbane underworld drug queen 'Lady' Flora Box. A life of love with the boy who's waiting for her on the bridge that stretches across a flooding, deadly river. A life beyond the bullet that has her name on it. And now that the storm clouds are rising, there's only one person who can help make her dreams come true. That person is Lola and she carries all the answers. But to find Lola, the girl with no name must first do one of the hardest things we can ever do. She must look in the mirror.

From international bestselling author Trent Dalton, Lola in the Mirror is a big, moving, blackly funny, violent, heartbreaking and beautiful novel of love, fate, life and death and all the things we see when we look in the mirror: all our past, all our present, and all our possible futures.

'Trent Dalton's third novel reminds me of the 1980s advertising slogan for the author's home state of Queensland: Beautiful one day, perfect the next ... Lola in the Mirror is a bold, big-hearted, hopeful, humorous, dark, reflective, truthful, superbly written novel that confirms Dalton's place in all the shimmering skies (to borrow the title of his second novel) of Australian literature. He is not a rising star but a star full stop.' The Australian

'Wonderful ... An original, heart-thumping novel ... you are right there with the protagonists, feeling and believing every word and every raindrop. It is the type of novel you read filled with pure hope and sorrow for the characters. You want to believe that everything is going to work out just fine, and that there will be dancing, and art, and delight. You won't know until the end, and by that time you, too, are running through the streets, turning the pages, and trusting that love wins.' Readings

'Dalton holds a mirror up to the darkest corners of this Australian life and reveals every bit of beauty, magic and calamity it has to offer.' Booktopia

Reviews

  • Brilliant

    5
    Autor: BarbT45
    Beautiful book, just brilliant
  • Art & Literature

    5
    Autor: LeighLeigh66
    What an amazing read! I loved the combination of art and literature. The story of a mother and daughter on the run and homeless in Brisbane. The daughter has a vision of being a renowned artist one day and expresses herself through sketches. At the beginning of each chapter there is a sketch with the artist’s interpretation. Dalton builds and develops each character and the storyline beautifully, nothing is missing, love, laughter, tears, excitement, suspense, I loved it all. Probably one of my favourite books ever!
  • Another masterpiece from Trent Dalton

    5
    Autor: Vickie Marie 55
    Heart wrenching, heart breaking, terrifying in its graphic depiction of the dark underbelly of West End Brisbane and the ‘floaters’ struggling to survive from one day to the next. Dalton’s mind-blowing attention to detail leaves no stone unturned and nothing left to the imagination. Strap yourself in and set aside plenty of time before you jump in.
  • lolainthemirror

    5
    Autor: Ing57
    Breathtakingly beautiful.
  • Wonderful book

    5
    Autor: KOG❤️
    I loved this book. Trent Dalton writes such amazing, captivating stories with raw, vivid characters who bring immense joy and heartfelt tears every time. Lola in the Mirror was beautiful.
  • Great book

    5
    Autor: Sefrojo
    Eye opening perspective of homeless people. Such a critical issue across Australia now and why isn’t more being done when big business making obscene profits whilst so many struggling to put a roof over their heads. But a great read apart from issues raised.
  • Lola in the mirror

    5
    Autor: Kittycatching
    Another fantastic book by Trent! Absolutely loved it!
  • Brilliant

    5
    Autor: marikachef
    I can still feel the memory of each characters story lingering.
  • Lola in the Mirror

    5
    Autor: Running Doc 14
    Fabulous read- I could not put it down till the very end. So insightful about houselessness and the consequences of DV. Thank you Trent Dalton
  • Disappointing

    3
    Autor: sleepyhead_reading
    Boy Swallows Universe was such an exceptional book that I perhaps had unrealistically high expectations for Lola In The Mirror. The story line was so unrealistic that I found it impossible to engage with the book, or it’s characters.
  • The Best?

    5
    Autor: Aussie Ace 05
    In my nearly 60 years of being able to read and a lifetime of reading books I am not sure if this is the best book I’ve ever read. If it’s not though then it must be damn close. It is a masterpiece! The incredibly original plot, the depth and breadth of the characters, the confronting issues dealt with, the joy, the sorrow, the evil, the humanity, the depth of knowledge, the wisdom, the humour, the startling reality of it all. I loved Boy Swallows Universe but somehow Trent Dalton has surpassed himself with Lola In The Mirror.
  • A beauty

    5
    Autor: Greg Horgan
    Such a masterful story teller. Another winner.
  • Totally in the Mirror…

    5
    Autor: mickname thats not taken
    An amazing book that takes you on a truly amazing journey! A journey where you can feel the rain pounding, the hurt, the fear, the pain and the joy! A heartfelt story that leaves you believing no matter what obstacles life throws at you, perseverance, determination, belief in yourself can conquer. Love it!
  • 5 stars

    5
    Autor: Lunar Haven
    Utterly brilliant!
  • Just wonderful!

    4
    Autor: HaddieAnn
    Another captivating story mixed with real and imagined people and places that took me away, loved it!
  • Quite possibly the best book I’ve ever read

    5
    Autor: elseephotography
    Trent Dalton is an incredible writer, I’m amazed at how well he can write female characters. I laughed and cried, there were suspenseful moments I couldn’t breathe, others that filled me with joy. The characters were rich, the story equally so. I loved it, and I’m not sure how I’m going to chose another book after this.
  • Couldn’t wait for it to end

    1
    Autor: Reich2704
    I couldn’t read boy swallows universe so I should have known this wasn’t for me. I must be the only person who didn’t love it…
  • Achingly beautiful

    5
    Autor: MiaBrittingham
    Another winner by Mr. Dalton. ❤️❤️❤️.
  • Beautiful, Colourful and Real.

    5
    Autor: LeeFigtree
    This is Trent Dalton at his best, Boy Swallows Universe was my favorite book of all time, and Lola in The Mirror is it’s brave little sister. Loved it.
  • Brilliant

    5
    Autor: Moorey333
    Loved this so much, don’t know how Trent dalton does it but his writing is astounding
  • The author’s best yet

    5
    Autor: rhitc
    4.5 stars The author is an award-winning Australian journalist, who rose to prominence as a novelist when his 2018 debut ‘Boy Swallows Universe’ went supernova and became an Australian publishing phenomenon. His writing credits now include adaptations for stage and screen of that work, two books of nonfiction and two more novels. Like BSU, this one is set in the author’s (and my) home town of Brisbane. The unnamed (she doesn’t know it either) protagonist is female, two months shy of her 18th birthday when we meet her, and living rough with her mother (or the woman she believes to be her mother) in an abandoned car in a wrecking yard on the river in West End. Mr Dalton draws on extensive experience interviewing and writing about the homeless (they prefer houseless) people of Brisbane to paint a picture of a hard lifestyle most of us will (thankfully) never experience, but which is feature of every large city in the world and many smaller ones. The release date of the novel during an affordable housing crisis, not just in Brisbane, is apposite. Mr D’s message (one of them at least) is that friendships are what get people through, no matter how flawed those friends. Our hero is feisty, street-wise, and remarkably philosophical. Not drug dependent either, although she deals them. Despite that, she is a remarkably sympathetic character who, in the best traditions of coming of age novels, overcomes great adversity to find true love and, more importantly, purpose in life by the end. Mr Dalton’s writing gets better with each outing. This has a similar page count to his previous novels but didn’t feel as long to me, not just because of the illustrations. (Our gal is an aspiring artist, so Mr D collaborated with an illustrator whose line drawings complement and enhance the text greatly.) The magic realism alluded to in the title serves its purpose well. The tension packed ending was gripping through many twists and turns. I wasn’t as taken with BSU as many seemed to be, but put me down as Trent Dalton fan now. His books so far have all centred on kids or adolescents. I’m interested to see whether he writes about an adult next time at bat.