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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
Sometimes there are books that you wish were not so timely. Intelligent, lyrical, and inspired by Mexican author Valeria Luiselli's experiences volunteering as an interpreter for young Central American migrants seeking legal status in the United States, LOST CHILDREN ARCHIVE is one such book. A blended family's road trip across America tangles into the refugee crisis at the US-Mexico border in heartbreaking artifacts--maps, photographs, and sound recordings all have equal weight to the written word as Luiselli attempts to grapple with the immensity of the crisis that is still happening, if not worsening, five months after the book's publication. LOST CHILDREN ARCHIVE is a powerful piece of writing and an intertextual rumination of how we observe and record our present that asks the question: what do we do with all that we observe? Do we let it pass by without comment? Or do we do something about it?
What even is this book?!
Good, yes, but it literally had a twenty-page sentence that changed point of view multiple times. Part metafiction, part relatively traditional narrative, part existential musings, part archival finding aid.
So, it takes some dedication, is what I'm saying.
It's smart, but I can see a lot of readers having trouble with it.
The coolest part, for me, is seeing a list of archival studies articles that one character has in a box, which was full of the articles that I am reading in the Introduction to Archives class I am currently enrolled in. What a wacky coincidence.
Full review to come.
Good, yes, but it literally had a twenty-page sentence that changed point of view multiple times. Part metafiction, part relatively traditional narrative, part existential musings, part archival finding aid.
So, it takes some dedication, is what I'm saying.
It's smart, but I can see a lot of readers having trouble with it.
The coolest part, for me, is seeing a list of archival studies articles that one character has in a box, which was full of the articles that I am reading in the Introduction to Archives class I am currently enrolled in. What a wacky coincidence.
Full review to come.
DNF 3.5 rounded down. Beautiful in many ways but just wasn’t holding me.
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
3.75 stars. This book started off so strong (the first narrator’s voice and POV was very interesting) but once it switched over to the second narrator’s POV, it lost momentum and never recovered it in my opinion.
I was not a huge fan of this book. The first half, narrated by the mother, was pretty one dimensional and the things the kids said - known only as the boy and the girl - were way too old & intelligent for their ages. I like the second half, narrated by the boy, much better. But still found myself skimming over large parts.
I appreciated what the author was trying to do but I just really didn't enjoy reading this. Mostly skimmed the 2nd half to finish. 2.5 stars
Valeria Luiselli's Lost Children Archive is a fascinating and multilayered novel, which makes it hard to review.
It is primarily a road trip novel, telling the story of a family on their last road trip together. However, it is infused with a strong political message in regard to the rising number of child refugees from Mexico and Central America. The history of the family transgresses to a bigger scope discussing the intricacies of the U.S.-Mexican borderlands. While doing so the narrator questions our concepts of memory and documenting and their authenticity. In general, the book is interspersed with contradictions. Fact and fiction merge into one another to the point that the reader has a hard time to distinguish what is past, what is present, what is real, and what is imagined. The use of various intertexts, plus a novel in the novel, further stress the ambiguity between the real and the imagined. Can an archive ever offer an authentic representation of the past in the present? Does one even exist if one is not documented? The connection between memory, individual and cultural, with the means of documenting, archiving and reporting are continuously discussed throughout the novel.
All in all, Luiselli offers a novel that transgresses its own diegetic reality in many ways. Granted, her narration is not at all points successful. The switch in narrating voices does not necessarily help the narrative. And her extensive use of intertext at points makes it seem like they don't serve the overall story but addressing a certain readership (or to seem woke?). Despite the downfalls, the novel is an beautifully written piece that I can recommend to anyone interested in intricate and experimental storytelling.
It is primarily a road trip novel, telling the story of a family on their last road trip together. However, it is infused with a strong political message in regard to the rising number of child refugees from Mexico and Central America. The history of the family transgresses to a bigger scope discussing the intricacies of the U.S.-Mexican borderlands. While doing so the narrator questions our concepts of memory and documenting and their authenticity. In general, the book is interspersed with contradictions. Fact and fiction merge into one another to the point that the reader has a hard time to distinguish what is past, what is present, what is real, and what is imagined. The use of various intertexts, plus a novel in the novel, further stress the ambiguity between the real and the imagined. Can an archive ever offer an authentic representation of the past in the present? Does one even exist if one is not documented? The connection between memory, individual and cultural, with the means of documenting, archiving and reporting are continuously discussed throughout the novel.
All in all, Luiselli offers a novel that transgresses its own diegetic reality in many ways. Granted, her narration is not at all points successful. The switch in narrating voices does not necessarily help the narrative. And her extensive use of intertext at points makes it seem like they don't serve the overall story but addressing a certain readership (or to seem woke?). Despite the downfalls, the novel is an beautifully written piece that I can recommend to anyone interested in intricate and experimental storytelling.
slow-paced
Beautiful book. People who gave this book low reviews did not get the point!