What I Drank Prior to This Review: At least a bottle of wine? Maybe more?
Going to be honest, today was THE WORST. I had a horrible day. So I kept drinking. And now i'm drunk enough for a review.
Spoiler-free Overview
First and foremost, Parker made me read this book. THANK YOU PARKER! So, so good. So there's this kid named Oscar (I feel liek this is pretty obvious.) His family is from the Dominican Republic. So this book is FILLED with Spanglish.
For those of you who don't know. My family is from Argentina. My father is the definition of an anchor baby. His folks (my Granny and Granpa --SHOUTOUT--) live in Buenos Aires. BA is one of the greatest cities ever. Needless to say, I speak my fair share of Spanish. This book is basically Spanglish at its best.
Anyway. Oscar is a nerd. A super nerd. And this story is about his life. He grows up in New Jersey. He also really (really) wants to fall in love (read: get laid). This story goes through his life. His ups, his downs....okay fine mostly his downs. And how he grows as a human.
Spoiler-free Thoughts
Alright. This book was awesome. You're totally engrossed in the story. It's not written in first person, though you kinda feel like it is. THe whole story seems like a huge metaphor while at the same time feels like it could actually happen. You also get some flashbacks into his mother and grandmother's past; stories that further reiterate a concept of karma. THough they call it fuku. The DR version of karma.
Plot
So what I love about this book is that no event is really crucial, you know? It's a "fictional memoir." Is that even a thing? Apparently it is. But I was completely taken by this story. I loved it. It was never slow, but it was never really fast either? It was well paced and the twists and turns were not super predictable but also not unpredictable (see spoilers). I just thought it was great.
Characters
What can I say. There is really only one. The narrator is Oscar's bff, but the story is his. Completely his. Even the side stories, they're all written with the intention of showing why Oscar is the way he is. I LOVED Oscar as a human. He was just so real. He had real feelings that effected his real choices. Let's be honest here ok? Any of us could have been Oscar.
You guys remember reading The Kite Runner and it took you until about half way through to realize it was actually fiction? If I hadn't already known it was fiction, i would believe this story to be true.
Writing Style
The writing style is beautiful. The end. Just believe me.
SPOILERS
Rating: 5/5 Shots. Really. Inspiring book.
What to pair it with: Rum. Obviously.
For now, I am forever drunkenly yours,
Sam
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