Reasons She Goes to the Woods

Davies's (True Things About Me) second novel chronicles the pre-teen and teen-age years of a troubled and often cruel girl named Pearl. Seen through her imaginative (hallucinatory?) eyes, the story takes the form of single-page episodes appearing only on the right hand page of the book, the left remaining virtually blank. Is Davies suggesting the need to take a breather between vignettes? Considering Pearl's gasp-inducing, hurtful acts and her own frequent heartbreak, this would be understandable. Pearl alternates between abandoning her baby brother, whom she calls The Blob, and being his supporter; between physically torturing her friends and craving them. Her negligent parents are helpless%E2%80%94the mother hobbled by demons and the loving father exhausted by Mom's madness. Raw, lyrical, sad, this haunting story packs a deceivingly strong punch. (Sept.)