Hey y'all! I hope fall is treating you well. Things are starting to settle for me after attending so many events. I just found out today that I may be heading to Istanbul early November for a business trip. I'm super excited because I've only been to China^^
I've been trying to stay on my reading game as well as reading books with POC in them and/or written by POC authors. I heard great things about Junot Diaz and I really love magical realism. So, I decided to read The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao and enjoyed it. Ugh the way that man writes slang is amazing! The book follows Oscar de Leon and his family's history with a curse known as fuku. Oscar is a huge nerd and wants to be a sci-fi/fantasy writer.
The book is broken up into three parts and jumps around chronologically and follows different characters in the Wao family or close to one of its members. While in some books this may be confusing, I feel the author does this skillfully and uses it to enhance the story. And for me it makes since because of how complicated family dynamics and past history can be. It helps capture the intricacy of how family does not operate on a linear timeline. Our present day family life is affected by decisions our ancestors have made often without our knowledge because those that carry those memories are no longer with us.
Switching to other characters' point of view helped the reader understand their actions and motivations. I personally did not care for Oscar's mother, but when you learn about her past you understand why she is who she is in present day. I wish we would have received more information on Lola and Oscar's father because I wonder how a woman so spurned by love fell in love again.
The novel covers a lot of themes and it really leaves you thinking even after it's over. It also gave me more insight into the Dominican Republic's history. A few things the novel illustrated that stuck with me was being othered by your own race for your interests. Growing up I was called white by my some of my peers or told that black guys wouldn't like me because I was weird and not a typical black girl. This came from some people thinking that if you were black and liked things that weren't considered "black interests" then you were strange and didn't fit in. Oscar's Dominican heritage is often called into question because of his geeky pursuits.
I def want to read more of Junot's work because this book was wonderful and took me on an emotional rollercoaster. If you decide to pick this book up please let me know what you think of it. I hope you enjoy it^^
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Dark Waters: Book Review
Evenin' everyone, I am back with a review for the last book I read. I decided to stick with Japanese literature and picked up a Japanese horror book by the author of The Ring, Koji Suzuki. Dark Water is a short story selection that explores the water and trash.
While these items seem like trash to others what's interesting is they really aren't. These items can either heal or wreak havoc. You'll find the review below the cut; I'll try to keep it as spoiler free as possible.
While these items seem like trash to others what's interesting is they really aren't. These items can either heal or wreak havoc. You'll find the review below the cut; I'll try to keep it as spoiler free as possible.
The book opens with a prologue of an elderly woman, Kayo, that is anticipating her son's family visit and being able to take walks with her granddaughter around the cape. The cape has many items that wash up on shore and she tells her granddaughter scary stories based off the items. Kayo feels, "Each item of debris has its own tale to tell. Any particularly intriguing thing you amy come across on the beach is best left untouched--because it begins to tell its tale to you, as soon as you pick it up. Fine if the story is heartwarming, but if it curdles your blood, things will never be the same."
Parade: Book Review
Hi blog fam! I recently finished Parade by Shuichi Yoshida and really enjoyed the book. I'm also pretty proud of myself for being on my reading game and consistently reading books. I have yet to select my next book, but I am bouncing around a few titles. I would like to read more YA, so I may watch a few vids from a Youtuber I follow that reads a lot of YA titles and see what she recommends.
Parade follows five people that live together by chance in a small apartment. Each character has a chapter dedicated to them from their perspective. The novel explores what happens when people that have no ties to each other live together. The novel explores complex human dynamics within ourselves and our relationships. Spoilers will be under the cut.
Characters
- Ryosuke Sugimoto- 21 year old male college student that is working part time
- Kotomi Okochi- 23 year old unemployed woman dating an idol
- Mirai Somai- 24 year old woman that loves to party
- Satoru Kokubo- an 18 year old that sells his body
- Naoki Ihara- a 28 year old man that works at a film distributor
After Dark: Book Review
Hey everybody! I hope everyone's week has been going well. I love to read, but haven't had the time until recently. I thought why not review some of the books I've been reading. So, welcome to my book reviews! If I come up with a catchy name or something I'll let you know lol
The first book I'll be reviewing is After Dark by Haruki Murakami. I'm a huge fan of his work and this is the third book of his that I've read. I will say that if you haven't read a book by him before, I would recommend reading a shorter one first. The longer novels tend to leave my slightly annoyed in the beginning with all the mystery, but that could be just me.
After Dark tells the story of a night filled with random encounters and strange occurrences. We follow Mari, a bookish college student, for most of the story. The reader gets the sense that she's avoiding someone or something. Her night starts off simple enough and before she knows it, she's pulled into some interesting situations.
What I like about this book is that Murakami is able to bring you into his world very quickly. I also think that there's naturally something interesting about the flow of time as it gets really late into the night. Places changes, strange things happens, and some things aren't what they seem. The book captures the essence of the odd things you'll find alone when it's very late at night.
The first book I'll be reviewing is After Dark by Haruki Murakami. I'm a huge fan of his work and this is the third book of his that I've read. I will say that if you haven't read a book by him before, I would recommend reading a shorter one first. The longer novels tend to leave my slightly annoyed in the beginning with all the mystery, but that could be just me.
After Dark tells the story of a night filled with random encounters and strange occurrences. We follow Mari, a bookish college student, for most of the story. The reader gets the sense that she's avoiding someone or something. Her night starts off simple enough and before she knows it, she's pulled into some interesting situations.
What I like about this book is that Murakami is able to bring you into his world very quickly. I also think that there's naturally something interesting about the flow of time as it gets really late into the night. Places changes, strange things happens, and some things aren't what they seem. The book captures the essence of the odd things you'll find alone when it's very late at night.