A gritty and gorgeous debut that follows a cast of gay and transgender club kids navigating the Harlem ball scene of the 1980s and ’90s, inspired by the real House of Xtravaganza made famous by the seminal documentary Paris Is Burning
It’s 1980 in New York City, and nowhere is the city’s glamour and energy better reflected than in the burgeoning Harlem ball scene, where seventeen-year-old Angel first comes into her own. Burned by her traumatic past, Angel is new to the drag world, new to ball culture, and has a yearning inside of her to help create family for those without. When she falls in love with Hector, a beautiful young man who dreams of becoming a professional dancer, the two decide to form the House of Xtravaganza, the first-ever all-Latino house in the Harlem ball circuit. But when Hector dies of AIDS-related complications, Angel must bear the responsibility of tending to their house alone.
As mother of the house, Angel recruits Venus, a whip-fast trans girl who dreams of finding a rich man to take care of her; Juanito, a quiet boy who loves fabrics and design; and Daniel, a butch queen who accidentally saves Venus’s life. The Xtravaganzas must learn to navigate sex work, addiction, and persistent abuse, leaning on each other as bulwarks against a world that resists them. All are ambitious, resilient, and determined to control their own fates, even as they hurtle toward devastating consequences.
Told in a voice that brims with wit, rage, tenderness, and fierce yearning, The House of Impossible Beauties is a tragic story of love, family, and the dynamism of the human spirit.
OMGGGG….. this BOOK, yall.
💓😭💔💓😭💔💓😭💔
Those emojis are how I felt the whole damn time I was reading.
Which is the complete OPPOSITE of how I felt with my last couple of reads. 😬
First of all, the narration WAS SO EFFING GOOOOOODDDDDDD.
The narrator, Christian Barillas, gave life to each character with precision, perfection and SO MUCH FEELING. The way he gave each person their entire own persona just by how he vocalized their words showed what a master he is at his craft!
I was so captivated by every single character that I was totally drawn into every single moment of every single chapter….and I credit his narration with a lot of why that happened.
This book was recommended to me awhile back because I am a HUGE fan of the show “Pose”.
I am completely amazed by the beauty, the talent, the creativity, the innovation and the strength possessed by the characters on the show….and by the real life human beings the show (and this book) is based on.
The LGBTQIA+ Harlem ball scene in the 1980s/1990s was full of fun, glamour, talent and sex…but it was also full of community, family, activism and strength during a time that was filled with so much fear, pain, ostracism and struggle.
The groundbreaking 1990 documentary “Paris Is Burning” tells the story of several legendary people in the ball scene during this time ..I HIGHLY recommend that you watch it if you are unfamiliar with the community and events that were happening. (you can currently stream it on HBOMax)
This book focuses on family members from the House of Xtravaganza. Their stories are heart wrenching and heart warming, full of struggles and hardships and tragedies but also full of freedom and discovery and triumphs.
“Paris is Burning” focuses on the actual balls with just a bit of the backstories of the people in them, “Pose” spends equal time on both, and this book focuses mostly on the backstories with just a bit of the balls.
I’m here for ALL OF IT.
The main characters in this book are all Latin American, so there is a lot of Spanish words and slang mixed with English that gave all the dialogue, storytelling and narration realness and authenticity. The narrator was TREMENDOUS vocalizing every unique accent and dialect for each character, remaining true to cultural backgrounds.
I thought this book was gritty, raw and honest while also being humorous, touching and fabulous.
I cried during sad moments, I laughed during funny moments, I grimaced during difficult moments, I smiled during joyful moments.
I cried as much as I cringed…there was SO MUCH pain yet at the same time so much beauty.
There is a WHOLE WHOLE LOT to make *some* people clutch their pearls—LOOOTTTSSS of sex, drugs and violence—so this may not be everyone’s cup of tea. (this was my pick for our monthly book club and I am VERY interested to see what other members have to say)
Part of me was like “Why did there have to be so MUCH loss and pain and struggle and difficult in these pages?”
And then I remembered….this is based on REAL life and REAL COMMUNITY and REAL HISTORY that unfortunately and tragically was filled with all of these things.
This book is based on REAL people with REAL stories…and we all know real life AIN’T all cookie cutter vanilla perfect for most people walking the Earth.
I feel like these types of stories NEED to be heard. To raise awareness but also to HONOR those human beings who are bravely trying to just be who they are in a world that does everything it can to bring them down…and to honor those who are no longer here who fought long and hard while they could.
And like I said before, it isn’t ALL heaviness and dread. There are plenty sparkling moments too.
This is a book that will stay with you long after you finish the last chapter.
5 fabulous shining stars for this read.