I’m having a much better time with Rivera than I had with Marti. Both I believe to be good writers, yet I much prefer Rivera’s writing style. His small short-story-ish vignettes are so simple, yet beautiful (and great for us those of us with extremely ADD reading habits). He is succinct and to the point, which makes sense as it is largely written from the perspective of a child.
The passion with which Rivera writes is contagious. I particularly enjoyed “Un Rezo.” A parent’s love is so sweet and pure. It saddened me how desperately the speaker wanted to see their son again. That they would offer up their own heart in exchange for their son’s. Some of the subject matter is quite sad but I’m enjoying the occasional humorous bits. I’ve also enjoyed the odd occasion on which Rivera makes subtle social criticisms that reminded me of Ruiz de Burton’s writing. Rivera draws the reader’s attention to the idealistic vision the Latino immigrants have of the United States in a somewhat heartbreaking manner, as it is from the perspective of an innocent, young boy.
I noticed that many classmates seem to be finding it confusing, but I think you just need to be patient when reading this style of literature. I have faith it will all come together soon. Overall, quite a good read. I’m thoroughly enjoying it. Well done, Rivera.
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2 comments:
I agree, both with that the format is great for we "ADD readers", and also that the passage "Un Rezo" struck me as immensely beautiful. A parent's love for their child seems to be so strong that they are willing to sacrifice anything, "Te prometo mi vida por su vida" (pg.15),and even to beg God and all the saints for mercy.
Thanks for bringing up that passage, I also found "Un rezo" to be very moving. There were a couple of things that struck me about it. First of all there's no narrative context, it's as if you're jumping right into someone's most intimate thoughts. Then you have the painful contrast of imagining a man dying at war and him as an infant at his mother's breast. Also, I was thinking about how Spanish can be so much more expressive than English, for the mother doesn't say "que no lo maten" but "que no me lo maten" which makes the statement more personal and intense. I'm looking forward to the rest of the book!
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