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A review by minibookwellington
Victim by Andrew Boryga
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
can confirm i feel like i’ve been seeing victim all over bookstagram for the last couple of months … for good reason!!!
victim is the story of javier perez, from his earliest days as a puerto rican american kid growing up in the bronx, all the way to his whirlwind climb to literary fame. javi grows up the only child of a single mom who works hard to make ends meet after javi’s drug dealer father is murdered in front of javi at a young age. javi has always been bookish and dreamed of becoming a famous writer. in his senior year of high school, in the midst of the college admissions process and his best friend being arrested and sent to prison for gang activity, javi has his eyes opened to the social currency of a good victim narrative. readers are privy to javi’s subsequent transformation into an up and coming social justice author speaking truth to power in a way only someone with his authentic and traumatic past can 😉
this book was so good. it is so incredibly readable and page turning. the voice of javi is so absorbing, and i was instantly locked in. specific scenes and lines had me laughing out loud because of their comical accuracy (here’s looking at you guidance counselor mr. martin)!!!!
i think my favorite thing is encapsulated in the quote “… just remember one thing: you’re not innocent either.” every character and situation was so perfectly captured and satirized. nobody is left unscathed. so much of this book, especially the final 50 pages or so had me squirming as a reader but in such a delightful way. i find such joy in being audience to that kind of successful satirizing and chaotic plot/character choices… there is a serious joy (for me at least) in feeling viscerally full of dread and anxiety but simultaneously aware that it is because the author is doing something so sharply and successfully.
every character’s never ending rat race for authenticity and moral high ground is a wonderfully entertaining indictment of virtue signaling and society’s love for a good victim.
highly recommend for fans of satire, especially american fiction and yellowface. 4.5 stars!
victim is the story of javier perez, from his earliest days as a puerto rican american kid growing up in the bronx, all the way to his whirlwind climb to literary fame. javi grows up the only child of a single mom who works hard to make ends meet after javi’s drug dealer father is murdered in front of javi at a young age. javi has always been bookish and dreamed of becoming a famous writer. in his senior year of high school, in the midst of the college admissions process and his best friend being arrested and sent to prison for gang activity, javi has his eyes opened to the social currency of a good victim narrative. readers are privy to javi’s subsequent transformation into an up and coming social justice author speaking truth to power in a way only someone with his authentic and traumatic past can 😉
this book was so good. it is so incredibly readable and page turning. the voice of javi is so absorbing, and i was instantly locked in. specific scenes and lines had me laughing out loud because of their comical accuracy (here’s looking at you guidance counselor mr. martin)!!!!
i think my favorite thing is encapsulated in the quote “… just remember one thing: you’re not innocent either.” every character and situation was so perfectly captured and satirized. nobody is left unscathed. so much of this book, especially the final 50 pages or so had me squirming as a reader but in such a delightful way. i find such joy in being audience to that kind of successful satirizing and chaotic plot/character choices… there is a serious joy (for me at least) in feeling viscerally full of dread and anxiety but simultaneously aware that it is because the author is doing something so sharply and successfully.
every character’s never ending rat race for authenticity and moral high ground is a wonderfully entertaining indictment of virtue signaling and society’s love for a good victim.
highly recommend for fans of satire, especially american fiction and yellowface. 4.5 stars!