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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
funny
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
sad
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A fascinating, roughly novel-shaped project!
I find that I get sucked in by a mixed-media, funky, experimental novel, but that I also struggle with them. The very nature of this work of art means that it is not going to flow the way us novel readers are used to, with images, documents, and blackout poems interspersed, the rhythms are going to be a little different, and in the case of this book it mostly worked for me. The way Torres explores the concept of erasure blackouts in a myriad of ways and within the context of gay treatment through history (particularly in the US) is engaging and thought-provoking. Torres splices together so much non-fiction material into and onto the fictional core story that it ends up being something not quite like anything I have read before.
“You see what I’m getting at: wherever there are facts, those facts are embellished, through both omission and exaggeration, beyond the factual.”
Ostensibly, the core narrative is our primary character seeking out a dying acquaintance, Juan, in a place referred to as the Palace to help care for him and then delving into memories (perhaps a memory palace?) and histories that have been blotted out, redacted, and written over. From this first story we then diverge into studies on sexuality, a rough biography of one Jan Gay, and flashes of remembrances that hop around in time. It really is all very intriguing and beguiling, though the connective stitching could be a little loose and fragmented, but again this is all by design, so I think it is merely a matter of your preferences when it comes to something "experimental". The writing itself alternated as well between being poetic in places, academic in others, and plain spoken. In a book that is very much discussing sexuality, it provides only fleeting glimpses of racy scenes, refusing to ignore the erotic in the human experience but not overplaying it either. There are many more scenes that seem to be lamentations and/or simply the gentle caring of one person for another - genuine connection through revealing experiences.
“I’d lost patience for novels. I did not want to die in the middle of a novel. I wanted only endings, last lines, goodbyes, and reunions. I wondered how might things end for me; how would it read, the final sentence of my life? The verdict?”
I find that I get sucked in by a mixed-media, funky, experimental novel, but that I also struggle with them. The very nature of this work of art means that it is not going to flow the way us novel readers are used to, with images, documents, and blackout poems interspersed, the rhythms are going to be a little different, and in the case of this book it mostly worked for me. The way Torres explores the concept of erasure blackouts in a myriad of ways and within the context of gay treatment through history (particularly in the US) is engaging and thought-provoking. Torres splices together so much non-fiction material into and onto the fictional core story that it ends up being something not quite like anything I have read before.
“You see what I’m getting at: wherever there are facts, those facts are embellished, through both omission and exaggeration, beyond the factual.”
Ostensibly, the core narrative is our primary character seeking out a dying acquaintance, Juan, in a place referred to as the Palace to help care for him and then delving into memories (perhaps a memory palace?) and histories that have been blotted out, redacted, and written over. From this first story we then diverge into studies on sexuality, a rough biography of one Jan Gay, and flashes of remembrances that hop around in time. It really is all very intriguing and beguiling, though the connective stitching could be a little loose and fragmented, but again this is all by design, so I think it is merely a matter of your preferences when it comes to something "experimental". The writing itself alternated as well between being poetic in places, academic in others, and plain spoken. In a book that is very much discussing sexuality, it provides only fleeting glimpses of racy scenes, refusing to ignore the erotic in the human experience but not overplaying it either. There are many more scenes that seem to be lamentations and/or simply the gentle caring of one person for another - genuine connection through revealing experiences.
“I’d lost patience for novels. I did not want to die in the middle of a novel. I wanted only endings, last lines, goodbyes, and reunions. I wondered how might things end for me; how would it read, the final sentence of my life? The verdict?”
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Justin Torres weaves together fact and fiction, old and new, and queer and conventional in this experimental novel. Here, we follow a unique pair: an elderly man named Juan and our young narrator who is dutifully living alongside Juan as his life comes to a close.
The two share their own personal histories, which are tied together by their status as gay men and their own brief encounter previously in life at a mental institution. Joining the inter-twined storylines is a look into a scientific study of homosexuality from the 1930s-40s: the researchers who conducted it, some of the participants, and the poetry formed by blacking out its contents.
Many references are made that can easily lead one into a deep rabbit hole of queer history, or create a read/watchlist of cultural references made by Juan as he reminisces on the art that surrounded his life.
This one will definitely stay with you
The two share their own personal histories, which are tied together by their status as gay men and their own brief encounter previously in life at a mental institution. Joining the inter-twined storylines is a look into a scientific study of homosexuality from the 1930s-40s: the researchers who conducted it, some of the participants, and the poetry formed by blacking out its contents.
Many references are made that can easily lead one into a deep rabbit hole of queer history, or create a read/watchlist of cultural references made by Juan as he reminisces on the art that surrounded his life.
This one will definitely stay with you
'From a certain distance, the catastrophic must be indistinguishable from the sublime'
Lyrical content peicing together reality and fiction. Will leave you questioning where that line of delineation is.
The poetry found in censure: beautiful. the pictures overdone but it is excused within the narrative.
I'm left feeling a little short on substance
Lyrical content peicing together reality and fiction. Will leave you questioning where that line of delineation is.
The poetry found in censure: beautiful. the pictures overdone but it is excused within the narrative.
I'm left feeling a little short on substance
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
reflective
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
This feels like it should be read multiple times
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated