Jezebel: V.c. Andrews

The Real People Behind Famous Fictional Characters

Sadie Stein — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 18:20:00 EDT

What, you thought Lolita and Norman Bates came out of thin air? More »

Flowers In The Attic: He Ain't Sexy, He's My Brother

lizzieskurnick — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 15:40:00 EDT

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Welcome to 'Fine Lines', the Friday feature in which we give a sentimental, sometimes-critical, far more wizened look at the children's and YA books we loved in our youth. This week, writer / reviewer / blogger Lizzie Skurnick reads 'Flowers In The Attic', the 1979 story of a brother and sister who keep it all in the family.

Austrian Man Locked His Daughter In The Basement For 24 Years

Jessica G. — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 09:30:00 EDT

Upon first reading the horrific story of 73-year-old Austrian Josef Fritzl, who locked his daughter, Elisabeth, in the family cellar in 1984 and proceeded to allegedly father as many as seven of her children, my reaction was damn, that is some V.C. Andrews shit. But then I read more of the reports, and I can no longer relate Fritzl's crime to a campy, pop culture artifact: Keeping your daughter and half of her children locked for over two decades in what authorities describe as a damp, narrow "series of underground rooms equipped for sleeping and cooking," according to the BBC, is nothing short of evil. CNN reports that on August 8, 1984 Fritzl's daughter, the now 42-year-old Elisabeth, was enticed by her father "into the basement, where he drugged her, put her in handcuffs and locked her in a room." Elisabeth, who had been sexually abused by Josef since she was 11, was reported missing two weeks later. More »

My Sweet Audrina: The Book Of Sister And Forgetting

lizzies — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 16:00:00 EDT

My Sweet Audrina: The Book Of Sister And Forgetting" alt="Click here to read My Sweet Audrina: The Book Of Sister And Forgetting" src="http://cache.jezebel.com/assets/images/39/2011/11/SweetAudrina031408.jpg"/>

Welcome to 'Fine Lines', the Friday feature in which we give a sentimental, sometimes-critical, far more wrinkled look at the children's and YA books we loved in our youth. This week, writer/reviewer/blogger Lizzie Skurnick rereads 'My Sweet Audrina', V.C. Andrews' X-rated, 1982 gothic horror novel in which Audrina Adare, an innocent, is Desperately Seeking Sister.

Doppelgänger Alert!

Dodai Stewart — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 18:20:00 EST

Gossip Girl star Chace Crawford is dating country singer and American Idol alum Carrie Underwood. This is Carrie Underwood; and this is Chace's sister, Candice. She was just crowned Miss Missouri. [People, Perez Hilton] More »

Were You a Judy Blume Enthusiast or a Babysitters Club Nerd?

Jessica G. — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 14:00:00 EST

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In today's Washington Post, book critic Jonathan Yardley extols the virtues of Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Little House books as part of "An occasional series in which The Post's book critic reconsiders notable and/or neglected books from the past." Though I was never personally a fan of all those Prairie books (they were kind of boring and unsexy for my tastes. Where was the talk of making out and menses??), the article got me thinking about the kinds of books I loved as a tween. I asked the other Jezebels what books they read under the covers in their pre-teen years. Anonymous Lobbyist and I were closet Greek mythology lovers (I particularly loved D'Aulaires). Tracie was obsessed with V.C. Andrews, Moe was into Ray Bradbury, Dodai loved Kurt Vonnegut, and we all were into old standbys like Judy Blume and the Babysitters Club. More »