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addisalazar's review against another edition
4.0
4.5. this book was so sad. it consisted of 6 short stories and none of them had a happy ending which i don’t mind because they were beautiful and real. my favorite ones were “the art of translation” and “the something rain”. i could see the traces of the author’s writing, all the stories had similar settings, there were recurring themes of broken family ties, addiction, death, mental illness, etc. but still each story felt unique.
i love this author’s writing style, given that aristotle and dante is one of my fav books ever. i love that he writes queer experiences in such a simple way, they’re heartbreaking but also real. i could see how some events of these stories were also put into ari and dante’s books.
a lovely read, it made me want to read even more from benjamin alire saenz :)
i love this author’s writing style, given that aristotle and dante is one of my fav books ever. i love that he writes queer experiences in such a simple way, they’re heartbreaking but also real. i could see how some events of these stories were also put into ari and dante’s books.
a lovely read, it made me want to read even more from benjamin alire saenz :)
bellsb00ksandwritings's review against another edition
4.0
This collection of seven stories was really beautiful and really depressing at the same time. Each story felt very real, and they all had a surprising twist at the end. When I started the last story I was convinced I was finally able to predict how it would end-I was wrong! (Thank goodness, I was wrong!!)
The only 'problem' I had with this book was that at some point it seemed like the stories started to blur into each other (maybe this was exactly why it was so good? I have to think about this...), which made it a little confusing, but only a little.
The only 'problem' I had with this book was that at some point it seemed like the stories started to blur into each other (maybe this was exactly why it was so good? I have to think about this...), which made it a little confusing, but only a little.
asurges's review against another edition
4.0
Wonderfully drawn characters, well-written stories about people living on the El Paso-Juárez border.
novaturientexplorer's review against another edition
5.0
This book was so stunning. This author is so damn like poetic. I admire him so much. Like, you don't understand just how much I liked it.
Would definitely re-read it.
Would definitely re-read it.
yuusasih's review against another edition
5.0
Actually I started this book way in 2014. When I read--and praised--Aristotle and Dante, Norman texted me and said that I should try this certain work by Benjamin Alire Saenz. So I tried it, since it's Norman who told me and he won literature prizes (lol). But then I got stuck on the first story.
Because it's so beautiful I couldn't move forward to read the other stories on the anthology for years.
Then, this month I really wanted to be hurt (lol). And no one can hurt me as beautifully as Benjamin Alire Saenz do. So I read the next story in this anthology, and then the next, and the next. All were beautiful. All were hurting. I can't even pick any favorite. Even just the presence of this book is beautiful. And I just love Benjamin Alire Saenz more.
Because it's so beautiful I couldn't move forward to read the other stories on the anthology for years.
Then, this month I really wanted to be hurt (lol). And no one can hurt me as beautifully as Benjamin Alire Saenz do. So I read the next story in this anthology, and then the next, and the next. All were beautiful. All were hurting. I can't even pick any favorite. Even just the presence of this book is beautiful. And I just love Benjamin Alire Saenz more.
swah's review against another edition
4.0
Sometimes the Rain was certainly my favorite story. The whole book is beautifully written, deeply personal, and incredibly captivating.
manaledi's review against another edition
4.0
I read this because I was struck by [b:Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe|12000020|Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, #1)|Benjamin Alire Sáenz|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1328320260s/12000020.jpg|16964419] and was looking for more of the same and this book really was more of the same - a LOT of the same themes (e.g., what does it mean to be Mexican enough?) but in a different format. The short stories worked really well to provide a diversity of view points and I finished this in one airplane ride.
lylyan_aki's review against another edition
5.0
I can't even explain how good Saenz's writing is. It's "soft", beautiful and painful. Life as he sees it will always hurt.