Scan barcode
A review by ps_stillreading
The Iliac Crest by Cristina Rivera Garza
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
The Iliac Crest is a book as fluid and as mesmerizing as the ocean. It is full of depth and mystery that I feel so inadequate as I try to talk about this book. The first time I read it, the beauty of the language washed over me, but I felt lost in it. The second time I read the book, a few months later, I felt like I dove deeper. And while I didn’t find all the answers I wanted, I did end up with a renewed awe and appreciation for this book.
One story night, our unnamed narrator’s evening is interrupted by a knock on the door. A strange woman comes in, soaking wet, and she insists she must stay in his house. She says she is Amparo Davila. For some ever-shifting reason, the narrator lets the woman enter. Soon afterward, another woman, a former lover comes along, the visitor our narrator was actually waiting for. He calls her The Betrayed. The entry of these two women sparks a series of changes and consequences for our narrator. They claim to know his secret: that he is in fact a woman.
What follows next is the narrator’s attempts to prove himself, to hold true to his identity, and to assure himself of his masculinity. But when the strange woman tells him of a stolen manuscript, his routines and very fixed life is thrown into mystery, ambiguity, and doubt as he hunts down the manuscript in an attempt to understand the strange woman and her words.
Another thing that stood out to me while reading is all the references to the ocean. Of its magnetic beauty. Its vastness. How it serves as an anchor to reality, to time and place. And how it can also allow you to be more open to the impossible. How the ocean can make you feel safe in the face of uncertainty. It also makes me think that even though the ocean is ever-moving and ever-changing, it is still the same ocean.
The Iliac Crest is difficult to talk about because the story itself is full of ambiguity and duality. There is a lot of juxtaposition between femininity and masculinity, reality and lies, truth and belief, past and present, existence and disappearance, life and death. And through it all, words and language play a key role. After all, without language, how can we describe ourselves and our experiences? How can we let future generations know of our existence? How can we help them frame their experience?
The Iliac Crest is a beautiful and difficult book to read. The language is lyrical and highly imaginative, but the story and the characters are not easy to grasp. It is quiet and atmospheric, and it draws you in with mystery and language. Despite feeling lost and confused while reading, I am so glad I read this book. This is one of those books that you have to give all your attention to, that you have to read with an open and inquisitive mind. A big brain book, if you will. I have read the Iliac Crest twice in 2023, and I think that this book is something I will reread for the rest of my life.
One story night, our unnamed narrator’s evening is interrupted by a knock on the door. A strange woman comes in, soaking wet, and she insists she must stay in his house. She says she is Amparo Davila. For some ever-shifting reason, the narrator lets the woman enter. Soon afterward, another woman, a former lover comes along, the visitor our narrator was actually waiting for. He calls her The Betrayed. The entry of these two women sparks a series of changes and consequences for our narrator. They claim to know his secret: that he is in fact a woman.
What follows next is the narrator’s attempts to prove himself, to hold true to his identity, and to assure himself of his masculinity. But when the strange woman tells him of a stolen manuscript, his routines and very fixed life is thrown into mystery, ambiguity, and doubt as he hunts down the manuscript in an attempt to understand the strange woman and her words.
Another thing that stood out to me while reading is all the references to the ocean. Of its magnetic beauty. Its vastness. How it serves as an anchor to reality, to time and place. And how it can also allow you to be more open to the impossible. How the ocean can make you feel safe in the face of uncertainty. It also makes me think that even though the ocean is ever-moving and ever-changing, it is still the same ocean.
The Iliac Crest is difficult to talk about because the story itself is full of ambiguity and duality. There is a lot of juxtaposition between femininity and masculinity, reality and lies, truth and belief, past and present, existence and disappearance, life and death. And through it all, words and language play a key role. After all, without language, how can we describe ourselves and our experiences? How can we let future generations know of our existence? How can we help them frame their experience?
The Iliac Crest is a beautiful and difficult book to read. The language is lyrical and highly imaginative, but the story and the characters are not easy to grasp. It is quiet and atmospheric, and it draws you in with mystery and language. Despite feeling lost and confused while reading, I am so glad I read this book. This is one of those books that you have to give all your attention to, that you have to read with an open and inquisitive mind. A big brain book, if you will. I have read the Iliac Crest twice in 2023, and I think that this book is something I will reread for the rest of my life.