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| Tuesday, February 27, 2007 |
| Sidertown Part Two |
| I am almost finished with the dreaded Spidertown. Only 25 more pages to go. It has been such a long process. I feel like I understand more of its worth now. The criticism I read for it was much more interesting than the actual book but it helped explain the significance. I even defended the book in my class discussion. The use of language for representation, the need to develop a literature that actually talks to the people it relates to, is necessary. If you say there is not a literary enviornment in a society then you have to create it. This is all well and good. I can handle the use of slang. I am not shy about cursing but I still think this was a bad book. It reminds me of those poets who say testicles all over their poems because they think it makes them gritty. This may be the case but that doesn't imply talent. You still have to do it right. This book is inconsistent in tone. If the characters speak in slang then they should speak that way consistently or have changes that make sense. In this book the character is speaking in almost incomprehensible slang at the beginning of the sentence and then speaks in proper English at the end. The book is EXTREMELY repetitive. The main character goes through analysis of the same situation over and over again. There is a reason there is an inside voice....so everyone else does not have to experience it! I don't want to read the continual heartache Miguel has over his car. I don't want to know every single possibility of things that could happen with Spider. Some internal analysis is merited in writing but this is overkill. I would recommend that the author find himself an editor. The best part of this book was making fun of it with my girlfriend. |
posted by bubamarenya @ 5:45 AM  |
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| Sunday, February 25, 2007 |
| Spidertown - Abraham Rodriguez |
It is funny that this should be the first book I post about. I have read at least four books since I started this blog. They were all better than this. Maybe I feel very strongly about not liking this book....Maybe I just really want to not read it so I am distracting myself.
Spidertown is a book about a young Puerto Rican and his drug dealing days in New York. The language is linguistically trying to be correct but is somehow inconsistent. I don't like reading such shallow vapid ramblings over and over again. It needs to lead to something. I will post again after I am finished. This book has taken me an eternity to read because I have disliked it from the first page. From the "faggit perfume" reference. Aside from the homophobic and SEXIST language and imagery it is just typical. How many times can you read the gangster story. Boy has to come up in a life of violence and drugs because there are no other options left - Boy has sex with a bunch of slutty girls ( never mind that he is a slut also ) - but Boy really wants a clean girl (the virgin whore complex much?) Boy fights to get out of the business while trying to deal with wanting all the material goods of the lifestyle and not wanting to ruin his rep - blah blah blah typical macho stereotype bs. I am sorry but I could see a gangster movies, watch commercialized hiphop and get the same story. Granted it won't come from a Puerto Rican perspective but hey we've got Carlito's Way. I will write again when I am finished. Maybe I will find the magic that made this book get published in the first place. I doubt it. |
| posted by bubamarenya @ 11:41 AM |
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| Thursday, February 01, 2007 |
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| The purpose of this blog is to talk about the books I read. I think I may be trying to evaluate my own reading materials, or realize how little I actually read. I am going to take a speedreading course one day....really...! Maybe when I am done with this next book. |
| posted by bubamarenya @ 2:50 PM |
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