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3.4 AVERAGE
3.4 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An absolutely amazing book that was well written, and made you connect with the characters on both sides of the economic situation.
A Mexican 'Grapes of Wrath'. The haves and the have nots. The hopeful and the hopeless. I wanted to box Condito's ears for his naive behavior that put him and his wife, Amerika, in so much danger. Delaney is a really fleshed out character who shows America the devil on one shoulder and the angel on the on the other. Kaira represents a part of all of us that is obsessed, whether good or bad. This is a fantastic book with depth and the tone of Latin culture that fate is ruled by invisible hands. I recommend this book for high school age and adults.
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The book is clearly political commentary. The point, I assume, is that we lead with empathy, but the author doesn’t do that themselves. Instead, we’re treated to stereotypical criminal behavior by the undocumented characters — one is a pedophile, another a rapist. And the American characters are callous, self-centered bigots. I didn’t identify with any of the characters and found the spiral into conservatism disingenuous. An overall sad, trite book but I did like the author’s snappy way of writing the drivel.
Ending was decent, but I felt the same way about the characters in this book as I did in When the Killing's Done by this author: one-dimensional. Some of them seem like caricatures of a stereotype. The funniest part is that Delaney and Kyra are describe on the back of the book by the publisher as "liberals" though they seem much more like Trump supporters to me with how carried away they get.
The second TC Boyle book I've read ... I like his writing style -- very crisp and meaningful. This book was particularly impactful to me given I live in a culture heavily influenced by Hispanic immigrants. Some of the characters were over-the-top stereotypical, but, I think, useful in the telling of the greater story.
Even though this book was published more than 20 years ago, it's as timely as ever. It has a long setup, but the ending packs a real punch.
This is not a book to enjoy. It's depressing and the characters are not likeable. I did not look forward to reading it. However, it is important social commentary done with satire. I thought the ending was perfect.
I read this as a school project. I would not have my high school students read this book. I doubt if they would be able to stick with it. My students are years behind in their reading levels. This book would be fine for upper high school grades who are on reading level. It would also be appropriate for college level literature classes.
I read this as a school project. I would not have my high school students read this book. I doubt if they would be able to stick with it. My students are years behind in their reading levels. This book would be fine for upper high school grades who are on reading level. It would also be appropriate for college level literature classes.
