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A review by dani005
Last Night I Sang to the Monster by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
5.0
So I wasn't sure if I was even going to rate this book a three when I first started it, but it grew on me, put my heart in a chokehold and squeezed so hard that I felt every emotion the kid in this story - Nick- did.
The way Nick talks in this book kinda reminds me of how the kid in “The Catcher in the Rye” talks. He’s got the same blunt, matter-of fact, cynical way of talking in the book. The story is viewed entirely from Nick's point of view and I love the way the writer infused his persona into the very fundamental diction of the story. He explains everything, breaks down people’s behaviour in the way that he can understand it. It becomes very obvious how observant the kid is. Nick takes everything in, watches everyone’s movements and the way they talk, and analyzes it. What was the most interesting thing though about how he analyzes everyone else, is how disassociated his view of these people were from how he viewed himself. It’s blatantly clear that Nick does NOT view himself as a normal kid. Almost everyone else can be messed up but just because of their ability to “connect” with the world, they suddenly are deemed normal by Nick. They can be weird, certainly weirder than the rest of the people who are a part of society, and yet, he still lends the impression that he’s separate from them. He isolates himself. Its a defence mechanism.
It doesn’t matter what age we are or where we come from. We can be broken, and although we can be this way because of consequently different factors in our lives, we will still be broken nonetheless in the same kind of fashion as many other people. Broken people are similar. You might not see it that way on the outside, but on the inside, broken people will often see reflections of themselves in the lives of other broken people around them.
I believe it's what draws us to certain people in our lives. We build comradeship with others because we see reflections of ourselves in these people. We see the people who we are or are becoming. We are drawn to the people who's characteristics are similar versions to our own character. We see this in the friends Nick makes in the clinic/institution he's staying at. Nick can see the courage and compassion of all the people who are a part of the same group he is. It doesn't matter that they're all addicts who have hit rock bottom. Nick can see himself in all of these people and can accept them because he can see the strength in these addicts, that even though life has beat the shit out of them, they still have hope that one day they will gain the strength and perseverance to get past the shit they've been through and move on. They have facets of the kind of person he wants to become. He can see the addict he has in himself, but he's drawn to these people because despite all the sadness and anger they hold, they have learned to live with it and it has given Nick hope for himself, a reassurance that he's not a lost cause.
I believe that we are all broken and this book wasn't just specifically written about the addicts of our world. Being addicted is only a coping mechanism for handling the tough blows life can give. Every person out there lives through a dark and shitty time. We each have our own demons and monsters to face. This story relates to that. It explores the depth of emotion that one experiences when dealing with the shock, trauma, fear, and uncertainty that life deals each of us in turn. It was such a gritty, realistic portrayal of the denial and slow and painful process that is involved in coming to terms with your own shitty life and how difficult it can be to face your monster head on and understand how to overcome the fear you hold for it.
I really enjoyed the character and charm this book was infused with thanks to the heart-warming protagonist that was Nick. He may have started off as a blunt and cynical protagonist but I loved watching the dynamics of this character grow as the story progressed. Nick slowly became more thoughtful, more open-minded and a more sentimental human being; growing as a person, slowly learning to understand, enjoy and embrace the intricate mysteries of life, for all the pain and happiness it offers.
The way Nick talks in this book kinda reminds me of how the kid in “The Catcher in the Rye” talks. He’s got the same blunt, matter-of fact, cynical way of talking in the book. The story is viewed entirely from Nick's point of view and I love the way the writer infused his persona into the very fundamental diction of the story. He explains everything, breaks down people’s behaviour in the way that he can understand it. It becomes very obvious how observant the kid is. Nick takes everything in, watches everyone’s movements and the way they talk, and analyzes it. What was the most interesting thing though about how he analyzes everyone else, is how disassociated his view of these people were from how he viewed himself. It’s blatantly clear that Nick does NOT view himself as a normal kid. Almost everyone else can be messed up but just because of their ability to “connect” with the world, they suddenly are deemed normal by Nick. They can be weird, certainly weirder than the rest of the people who are a part of society, and yet, he still lends the impression that he’s separate from them. He isolates himself. Its a defence mechanism.
It doesn’t matter what age we are or where we come from. We can be broken, and although we can be this way because of consequently different factors in our lives, we will still be broken nonetheless in the same kind of fashion as many other people. Broken people are similar. You might not see it that way on the outside, but on the inside, broken people will often see reflections of themselves in the lives of other broken people around them.
I believe it's what draws us to certain people in our lives. We build comradeship with others because we see reflections of ourselves in these people. We see the people who we are or are becoming. We are drawn to the people who's characteristics are similar versions to our own character. We see this in the friends Nick makes in the clinic/institution he's staying at. Nick can see the courage and compassion of all the people who are a part of the same group he is. It doesn't matter that they're all addicts who have hit rock bottom. Nick can see himself in all of these people and can accept them because he can see the strength in these addicts, that even though life has beat the shit out of them, they still have hope that one day they will gain the strength and perseverance to get past the shit they've been through and move on. They have facets of the kind of person he wants to become. He can see the addict he has in himself, but he's drawn to these people because despite all the sadness and anger they hold, they have learned to live with it and it has given Nick hope for himself, a reassurance that he's not a lost cause.
I believe that we are all broken and this book wasn't just specifically written about the addicts of our world. Being addicted is only a coping mechanism for handling the tough blows life can give. Every person out there lives through a dark and shitty time. We each have our own demons and monsters to face. This story relates to that. It explores the depth of emotion that one experiences when dealing with the shock, trauma, fear, and uncertainty that life deals each of us in turn. It was such a gritty, realistic portrayal of the denial and slow and painful process that is involved in coming to terms with your own shitty life and how difficult it can be to face your monster head on and understand how to overcome the fear you hold for it.
I really enjoyed the character and charm this book was infused with thanks to the heart-warming protagonist that was Nick. He may have started off as a blunt and cynical protagonist but I loved watching the dynamics of this character grow as the story progressed. Nick slowly became more thoughtful, more open-minded and a more sentimental human being; growing as a person, slowly learning to understand, enjoy and embrace the intricate mysteries of life, for all the pain and happiness it offers.