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knittyreader's review
5.0
It took me a little while to get into this book because I was reading something else first, but when I really started reading I could hardly stop. While reading I wanted to cry, throw things, in short: this book pushed all of my emotion buttons.
deedralapray's review
4.0
I'm not surprised to find out that Steve Almond is mostly known for his political non-fiction. In fact, this is his first novel. I was astonished by his writing style. It seems like everything I have read lately has been a little dumbed down, but then, look at the world we are living in now. However, this book evolved as the novel unfolded. The first part of the book is mainly about Lorena and Jenny - two teenage girls who have been partnered for a science fair project. Lorena, Lo, is from a poor family with no father and a non-documented mother and brother. Jenny is from a wealthy family and is seemingly the exact opposite of Lorena. When I first began this book, I thought that it could perhaps be YA, but oh, no! The book quickly becomes extremely adult and covertly political. I loved it!
dylwallace9's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
poodlertoodler's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
smepstein's review
4.0
3.5/5. sure i MAY have misread the synopsis and thought the story was gonna be about something completely different, but even so this book was super weird. but i liked it? kinda? idk lol
greensalbet's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
If this is your first Steve Almond book, settle in for a wild adventure and thought-provoking commentary on the flaws of American culture. This novel touches on many hot-button topics, but the one I found most compelling was how police officers bend, distort, ignore, and exaggerate the facts of cases in order to wrap them up quickly, to maintain rank, and to please the public. It’s also a story about undocumented immigrants, racial profiling, and the heart-wrenching divide between families struggling to get by versus those living with the ease of inherited wealth. Written in five parts, the novel is about two families during Ronald Reagan's presidency in the 1980s.
Unlike most stories about sexual predators/addicts, Almond's novel takes this storyline in a new direction. Marcus Stallworth is born to a teen mother who gives him to a Christian Scientist woman in Indiana’s foster care system. From an early age, Marcus's foster mother beats him in the mornings if he awakens with an erection -- to rid him of sinful thoughts. This formative training leaves him with damaged sexual proclivities, one of which is an attraction to younger females.
Marcus is a bright student who earns a scholarship to study zoology at a small private school in Pennsylvania where he meets his wife, Isabelle, the daughter of an industrialist. Marcus is drawn to liaisons with other women in the early years of his marriage. As his wife’s family money is allowing him to pursue the work he loves, studying scorpions, she warns him this behavior must cease. He successfully fights his yearnings until he meets Lorena Saenz.
When teenage daughter Jenny is assigned a Science Fair project with Lorena Saenz, the only legal citizen to Honduran-American mother, Graciela, and older brother, Tony, Lo is invited to work on the assignment at the Stallworth home. There, she is drawn to the wealth and security of the Stallworth family. She develops an immediate attraction to father Marcus, a working scientist who offers to teach her about the world of scorpions, his research interest. Marcus is equally pulled toward her as a replacement for his disdainful teens who are shallowly engrossed by social media and materialism.
Marcus recognizes her interest, tries to thwart it, and eventually plots to desert his Sacramento family and reappear in another state with a new identity. The Sacramento community of police investigators assume he has been murdered after finding his abandoned car in the desert. From here, a series of tragic events are set into motion which tear asunder the lives of the two families.
The reason I didn't give this a 5-star rating was because of a few sections that slowed down the narrative. The scientific explanations about the scorpions, and the desert descriptions were a bit exhausting to this reader.
The reason I didn't give this a 5-star rating was because of a few sections that slowed down the narrative. The scientific explanations about the scorpions, and the desert descriptions were a bit exhausting to this reader.
booksaremysuperpower's review
2.0
(2-3 stars) Look, I'll say this: Steve Almond remains one of the most talented, generous, compassionate, quirky and profound writers I've ever come across. I find his writing (and teaching, if you've ever taken a workshop with him) astounding and inspiring. There's so much about him and his approach to craft that just works. Which is why it very much disappoints me to not fall head over heels in love with this novel.
It's certainly an ambitious effort. There's so much juicy and hard-hitting stuff in here: scorpions, science, Mormon sects living in Mexico, Reaganism, the 80s, child molestation, the prison system, racism, misogyny, teen angst, drugs, illegal immigration... perhaps it was too ambitious? I'm not sure all of these themes got equal weight and I often found myself adrift by the scope of the storytelling.
I also had a hard time connecting with these characters, if I'm honest. The only character that I truly followed with any curiosity was Detective Pedro Guerrero. In fact, if Guerrero was the protagonist to the story and not Lorena, I might have felt more invested overall. The middle section of the novel, where Guerrero is trying to do some serious detective work and go around his boss (and trying to take Lorena's word seriously but also protect her), was the strongest part of the book with true stakes, and Guerrero just came off as a more developed and nuanced character than the others. I cared about him and wanted him to succeed.
I mean, was I supposed to care about Marcus Stallworth, self-proclaimed child predator/abandoner of family/all around boring individual at all? The story hinges on his disappearance and only Lorena (after a too brief interaction with a map where she seems to solve the mystery of his whereabouts way too quickly), really, seems to care.
Different sections of the novel felt tonally all over the place, given such heavy themes. I wasn't sure where I supposed to land emotionally. The story of Tony Saenz and his treatment by the police and FBI is heart wrenching. Plus, his mother Graciela's constant fear of deportation was intense. But then we get little scenes with Nancy Reagan consulting her astrologer on how she (and the President) should handle major affairs (which is apparently factual), and it comes off as humorous and a little wacky - too light, in some ways, for the full weight of such a novel.
What I think ultimately kept me from fully sinking into the story, however, was the format. There are no chapter breaks, just aspects of the story, not always linear, told by different points of view, and separated into 5 “books.” I needed chapter breaks! There is so much to take in here and my reader brain felt quite overwhelmed by the constant shifts in POV, location, facts, time lapses, etc.
I'm probably in the minority on this read but perhaps my expectations were high too, since this is his first published novel. Writing wise, Almond still crafts beautifully intricate and vivid sentences, even though I wasn't a fan of the actual story. For the location, he definitely captured California and the 80s quite well. I did feel transported back in time.
I'm looking forward to what's next!
It's certainly an ambitious effort. There's so much juicy and hard-hitting stuff in here: scorpions, science, Mormon sects living in Mexico, Reaganism, the 80s, child molestation, the prison system, racism, misogyny, teen angst, drugs, illegal immigration... perhaps it was too ambitious? I'm not sure all of these themes got equal weight and I often found myself adrift by the scope of the storytelling.
I also had a hard time connecting with these characters, if I'm honest. The only character that I truly followed with any curiosity was Detective Pedro Guerrero. In fact, if Guerrero was the protagonist to the story and not Lorena, I might have felt more invested overall. The middle section of the novel, where Guerrero is trying to do some serious detective work and go around his boss (and trying to take Lorena's word seriously but also protect her), was the strongest part of the book with true stakes, and Guerrero just came off as a more developed and nuanced character than the others. I cared about him and wanted him to succeed.
I mean, was I supposed to care about Marcus Stallworth, self-proclaimed child predator/abandoner of family/all around boring individual at all? The story hinges on his disappearance and only Lorena (after a too brief interaction with a map where she seems to solve the mystery of his whereabouts way too quickly), really, seems to care.
Different sections of the novel felt tonally all over the place, given such heavy themes. I wasn't sure where I supposed to land emotionally. The story of Tony Saenz and his treatment by the police and FBI is heart wrenching. Plus, his mother Graciela's constant fear of deportation was intense. But then we get little scenes with Nancy Reagan consulting her astrologer on how she (and the President) should handle major affairs (which is apparently factual), and it comes off as humorous and a little wacky - too light, in some ways, for the full weight of such a novel.
What I think ultimately kept me from fully sinking into the story, however, was the format. There are no chapter breaks, just aspects of the story, not always linear, told by different points of view, and separated into 5 “books.” I needed chapter breaks! There is so much to take in here and my reader brain felt quite overwhelmed by the constant shifts in POV, location, facts, time lapses, etc.
I'm probably in the minority on this read but perhaps my expectations were high too, since this is his first published novel. Writing wise, Almond still crafts beautifully intricate and vivid sentences, even though I wasn't a fan of the actual story. For the location, he definitely captured California and the 80s quite well. I did feel transported back in time.
I'm looking forward to what's next!
readers_block's review
4.0
An extremely unique, haunting story that touches on the criminal justice system, immigration, love and attraction, families and so many other profound topics.
This story is quite winding and likely will lead you places you don't expect, but I really enjoyed the ride.
This story is quite winding and likely will lead you places you don't expect, but I really enjoyed the ride.