Eve Babitz was a famous LA author known for her visual art and her semi-fictionalized memoirs. Black Swans specifically was a collection of nine short stories, recounting the 80s and 90s rage of youth, envy, beauty, and jealousy in the ever-changing world of Hollywood and California in general. While the book itself is considered non-fiction, I’d say that it bleeds into chick-lit.

Specifically in Black Swans, Babiz writes about her learning how to tango, the complicity of AIDS at the time, and even the Hollywood Cemetery. The short stories are encaptivating and full of adventure — totally transporting you into the 1980s and 90s pop culture.

I mostly listened to this book on audiobook, using spotify; shoutout spotify, thank you for 15 hours free per month with my spotify premium membership. Firstly, the speaker’s expression, I think, really added to the experience of listening to it. Second, I was able to get stuff done while listening to the book; so I felt pretty productive.

This book honestly was one of my favorite reads (or I guess listens?) of the year. It was different from what I usually read and was fairly insightful. The short stories in total add up to around 256 pages. So definitely a short read.

I realize this book will not be for everyone. It’s probably an acquired taste considering there isn’t much of a connected plot. However, if you are looking for a short read, I really do think it is a perfect read.

Overall I’d give this a solid 4 stars!