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larryebonilla's reviews
39 reviews
Another Country by James Baldwin
4.0
In Another Country, James Baldwin writes with a vehemence. As I’ve only read his Giovanni’s Room before, I now recognize that Baldwin possesses such an intimate wisdom on the dire issues of his time and even today. He mainly writes about race—blacks and white relations—, gender, and sexuality; the foreground to this magnum opus is the janky parts of New York City. His characters explore art; there are writers, singers, and actors. Yet, this story—the pinnacle of literary fiction—deals with how these character confront these issues and how horrifically messy it becomes. Rationality is a mirage and only passion and anger remain.
I look forward to read Baldwin’s other works.
I look forward to read Baldwin’s other works.
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
5.0
I loved diving into my first Toni Morrison novel with Song of Solomon. This novel is no joke; it is a powerfully dense story about a self-narrative. We have a strong powerful story, and Morrison expands on this exponentially. In a story centering around a family in Michigan, multiple thematic threads weave in the narrative. Racial tension, adversity, and commentary are strong here; real historical events pertinent to the civil right movement are shown. There is an exploration of gender, between masculinity and femininity; there is a focus on the role and expectations. Additionally, there is the story of family—of destiny. It is of flight and freedom. This is the Song of Solomon, the story of Milkman.
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez
5.0
Absolutely incredible and dense work. I love the style García Márquez uses; it is an intimate and omnipresent story of a family cursed to fail while also acting as a retelling of Colombian history. Legendary work.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
4.0
Read by recommendations of my Creative Writing Professor (shoutout Dr. Blake)
As this is my first time reading Cormac McCarthy’s work, I am particularly interested in his prose style. He is commonly regarded as a minimalist, and one can definitely see that. With this style of writing, McCarthy can play with perspective and dialogue in very interesting ways. Thoughts, dialogue, and perspective are melt easily together. Yet, there is an intuitive element to the way he writes. Additionally, I want to praise the balance of excellent and progressive poetry in his prose.
Thematically there is lots to appreciate. This is my first post-apocalyptic novel, but I think The Road may be the standard. We cut away from the melodrama, fantastical, and absurd circumstances of a post-apocalyptic world. In The Road, readers are thrown into a world where the only truth is the bond between a man and his son trying to trek the desolation of the world. Here we are presented with the themes of survival, anemoia, capriciousness of modern normalities, existentialism (there is an absurdist angle), and the value of precious little moments.
As this is my first time reading Cormac McCarthy’s work, I am particularly interested in his prose style. He is commonly regarded as a minimalist, and one can definitely see that. With this style of writing, McCarthy can play with perspective and dialogue in very interesting ways. Thoughts, dialogue, and perspective are melt easily together. Yet, there is an intuitive element to the way he writes. Additionally, I want to praise the balance of excellent and progressive poetry in his prose.
Thematically there is lots to appreciate. This is my first post-apocalyptic novel, but I think The Road may be the standard. We cut away from the melodrama, fantastical, and absurd circumstances of a post-apocalyptic world. In The Road, readers are thrown into a world where the only truth is the bond between a man and his son trying to trek the desolation of the world. Here we are presented with the themes of survival, anemoia, capriciousness of modern normalities, existentialism (there is an absurdist angle), and the value of precious little moments.
No One Writes to the Colonel and Other Stories by Gabriel García Márquez
4.0
Read for class: Studies of World Literature: Gabriel Garcia Márquez
GGM writes with absolute intimacy and patience. This is a story of the failure of government systems, the act of taking and giving, and the dread of significance and need. In this story, the Colonel—a hard pressed and down-on-his-luck man—has to stress and weigh the strategies of maintaining a living. His dead son left a time-sensitively-valuable rooster, yet his wife is sick—dying. The community believes in the worth of this Rooster, yet the coupled are pressed into a terribly difficult situation. Th is is especially effectively done with GMM’s use of the final line to emphasize the patient dread of a painful period between the now and the later.
GGM writes with absolute intimacy and patience. This is a story of the failure of government systems, the act of taking and giving, and the dread of significance and need. In this story, the Colonel—a hard pressed and down-on-his-luck man—has to stress and weigh the strategies of maintaining a living. His dead son left a time-sensitively-valuable rooster, yet his wife is sick—dying. The community believes in the worth of this Rooster, yet the coupled are pressed into a terribly difficult situation. Th is is especially effectively done with GMM’s use of the final line to emphasize the patient dread of a painful period between the now and the later.
A Happy Death by Albert Camus
4.0
A Happy Death is a special novel. There is an episodic nature to the contents, but the unifying element is the understanding of happiness. Camus is one of my favorite writers, I try to emulate him. As this is his first fictional work, it is amateurishly composed, yet I think there is a stylistic value in this. This has some of my favorite prose and the imagery language is beautiful. This is a good novel, and I am very happy to have read it.