The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao – Junot Díaz

Simultaneously funny and heartbreaking, sexy and disturbing, utterly compelling and unforgettable, this much anticipated 2007 novel by writer Junot Díaz has received much (deserved) acclaim. As the year closes, it will be near the top of most “best books of the year” lists.
The novel centers around the survivors of a Domincan family in urban New Jersey, living with [...]

Read Full Post »

Books – Amulet by Roberto Bolaño

Amulet by Roberto Bolaño(translated to English by Chris Andrews) is the Chilean writer’s “other” novel to be published in the United States in the spring of 2007.  The Savage Detectives has been a lead review in every publication that still covers books in April and May.
Unlike that book’s epic size and scale,  Amulet is a short, intimate novella expanding on the story of [...]

Read Full Post »

Books – Rock en Español by Ernesto Lechner

Rock en Español by Los Angeles Times contributor Ernesto Lechner delivers a brisk yet highly informative overview of this alternative music movement from Latin America.  Not merely copying North American or European bands, these artists embrace their own regional styles and traditions alongside rock, pop, hip-hop and electronic music. Lechner’s book is primarily comprised of interviews with leading [...]

Read Full Post »

Books – Leaving Tabasco by Carmen Boullosa

1999’s Leaving Tabasco by Mexican writer Carmen Boullosa is a humorous 1960s coming of age story using magic realism with leftist and feminist politics. In detailed and poetic descriptions Boullosa depicts a fully realized traditional household and village, including the everyday cruelties against the poor, indigenous, and women of rural Southern Mexico. Nor does she sugarcoat the conflicts and [...]

Read Full Post »