1. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

[anait.livejournal.com]

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz.

I thought this book was fantastic. I highly recommend it!

My favourite thing about this book was the prose. It's half in English, one quarter in Spanish and one quarter in geek. I'm fluent in English, much less so in classic sci-fi, comic books, RPG's and Tolkien, and not at all in Spanish. It didn't matter. Context is everything, and I picked up new words as I went along. The prose was bursting with life and energy. I'd start a chapter and get sucked in by the narration; wouldn't be able to put the book down until that section was over. The writing is sometimes irreverent and satirical (the dictator of the Dominican Republic is referred to as 'the Failed Cattle Thief' and 'Fuckface') and sometimes very moving. It made me think of an older post by cupidsbow. She talks in one part of the post about the power of writing in the vernacular vs. 'literary' English in fiction (and fanfiction).

So, the story. It's a multi-generational tale of the de Leon family, who are under a particularly awful curse, or 'fuku.' Whether you believe in the supernatural or not is irrelevant. The author leaves it to the reader to decide if the events that play out are from the fuku, or are due to the misfortune that falls on everyday people living under a brutal dictatorship. The story starts out in New Jersey with Oscar de Leon, the protagonist, but also contains sequences about the earlier lives of his mother and grandfather in the Dominican Republic.

Oscar is not a likeable protagonist, he does little that made me like him, but he did have my sympathy in certain moments. The narrator, Yunior, seems to be a loose autobiographical stand-in for Junot Diaz, although I haven't Googled any interviews for the author and may be completely wrong. (ETA: Wrong!) There is a lot of sexism in the narration and in the story which Junot Diaz says is cultural, and it seems to be as damaging to the men as it is to the women. Because of this, it was a relief to be able to read the sections that were built around Lola, Oscar's sister, and Beli, their mother; to get more of the women's lives and thoughts, even through Yunior's narration.

The way that the story unfolds is great, being educated in Dominican history was also great, and after you are done the book you may like to read this review by Abigail Nussbaum (contain spoilers), which is much, much more interesting and in-depth than mine. (I got the link from an earlier review in this community. Thank you!)

5. The Mephisto Club, Tess Gerritsen

[kethlenda.livejournal.com]

Mystery/thriller is one of those genres that I don't read often, but that I do read occasionally when I need a change of pace. I've been reading a lot of fantasy lately, and needed a break. I saw this at a friend's house, saw that it was a thriller with a mythological aspect, and thought it sounded like just the thing, so I borrowed it.

What I didn't realize is that it's a later book in an ongoing series, featuring detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles. However, Gerritsen brought me up to speed pretty quickly on Jane's and Maura's histories, without getting info-dumpy. I never felt like I was lost.

The two women are investigating the murder of a young woman. Their investigations lead them to other murders, and to a strange group of scholars fascinated by the concept of evil. These scholars believe that the killer is not exactly human, but instead is one of the Nephilim, who are said to be the offspring of angels and mortal women. It's an interesting use of the mythology. Gerritsen doesn't give a definitive answer to the question of whether the Nephilim actually exist in her "universe," or whether it's just a myth that attempts to explain why some people lack empathy for their peers.

The plot of The Mephisto Club is exciting and often scary. It's "beach read" type stuff, but it was just what I needed; it had just enough mythological material to suck me in, but was different from my usual fantasy fare and gave me a "break."

YA: Shaun Tan, The Arrival, and Cynthia Leitich Smith, Rain Is Not My Indian Name

[rsadelle]

( Shaun Tan, The Arrival )

( Cynthia Leitich Smith, Rain Is Not My Indian Name )

6. When Tía Lola Came to Visit Stay

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I am, inexplicably given my lackluster opinion of her novels, on a “Let’s read everything Julia Alvarez ever wrote!” kick.

Fortunately this book has rewarded my patience. It’s a fluffy little children’s book that plays to Alvarez’s strengths (family drama, moderate wackiness) without the political elements that aren’t her strong suit. It isn’t very deep, but it amused me, and even in Spanish it was a quick read; I think actual children would enjoy it too.

There is one scene that deals explicitly with racism. One of Miguel’s classmates tells him that he’s sure to get on the baseball team, because he’s a Dominican like Sammy Sosa; and Miguel’s dad says, no, he’ll get on the baseball team because he’s good at baseball, and he’s good at baseball because he practiced, which has nothing to do with how Dominican he is. A simple and elegant tutorial in How Not to Be Racist 101 for eight-year-olds, on a level they could probably apply directly to their own lives.