& sons. david gilbert. (167)

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i checked out david gilbert's & sons, after reading about it on flavorwire's list of 15 best novels of 2013:  

of course, my love for salinger being the reason for my reading.  and i have to say its quite ambition to channel salinger for a character but gilbert's novel was well written and one that i assume salinger would not have hated.  but i can not sing its complete praises, wonderful prose, yes, but the storyline made a disappointing turn at the end.  (yes, there will be spoilers in this post.)

but lets start with some praising.  as i mentioned before expectations are set high when salinger is alluded to for a novel and gilbert did not disappoint.  he was witty and filled with wonderful allusions and imagery.  for example:

just a week earlier, the temperature sulked in the teens, the windchill dragging the brat into newborn territory.

(how clever!)

 

a.n. dyer's eulogy for his dear friend charlie toppings:

what are we in this world without our friends if family is the foundation then friends are its crossbeams it's drywall it's plumbing friends keep us warm and warmhearted friends furnish and with a friend like charlie topping i was never without a home. . . whenever i was need of succor--succor. . . i could count on charlie.  he was an unlocked door with something smelling good in the oven.  he was the fire in the fireplace, the blanket draped over the couch, the dog at my feet.  he was the shelter she. i was the storm.

(so sweet!)

and:

the bubbles in the champagne shimmied up the flutes, a hundred phony smilies breaking the surface, like some esther williams routine . . .

(i always adore an esther williams reference!)

and last but not least

every act of memory is an act of imagination.

(which is true, our minds fill in the gaps and so our memories are more imagination than actual recollection.)

the story is narratored by philip toppings, and his likability was on par with the awkward affection one feels for holden caulfield.  both are at low points in their life they differ in that i was hopeful that holden turns around, whereas with phillip i was just creeped out by him.  he went from pathetic yet insight godson of a.n. dyer to single white female.  i didn't care for his character and though i guess he was important because he revealed that & (a.n. dyer's novel in the book) was about dyer's dominance and abuse in their friendship and also for the letters that started different sections.  but other than that his creepy stalker behavior took away from the story of dyer and his son.  though i guess in the movie adaption of the book, he would make for a good point of view.

random digression, i could see this as a wes anderson movie, quirky family, absent father (weird cloning story), and creep neighbor.  bill murray as a.n. dyer, adrien brody and jason swartzman as richard and jaime, and owen wilson as phillip toppings.  not sure who would play andrew, guess he would have to look like a young bill murray.  (hollywood should make this happen!)

and now that i mentioned it the whole cloning storyline was not my cup of tea if it was true.  it is my cup of tea, if was some crazy story a.n. dyer made up to justify how he had ruined his life.  though towards the end of the novel it felt like it was to be true.  

and in the end, i didn't like andrew dying.  it just seemed so random and out of place.  its intent seemed more like a convienent way to finish up the story.  it was really great up until that point and then it fell apart for me and i started to lose interest. 

but i mean still check it out.  it is a good story and well-written and maybe you will enjoy the ending more than me.

and before i close i have to add.  this novel made me long for new york.  so many locations were mentioned that i could plan a whole tour of the city based on it.  my next trip out i will definitely hit up the frick!  and do central park proper, i mean i haven't even seen the alice in wonderland statues.  oh and i love love loved when andrew went to the met looking for jennie.  what an adorable game!!! i am going to do that someday.  call someone i am dating and tell them what museum, i am at and then say that i am staying in front of my favorite work of art and see of they can find me!  but seriously the whole time i read, i wished that i was in new york!

*forgot to take a picture before i returned the book.

americanah. chimamanda ngozi adichie. (166)

i know its only 13 days into the new year but this might be my favorite read of 2014!

so i came across chimamanda ngozi adichie's americanah on flavorwire's list of best books of 2013

i am not a fan of beyoncé but decided to check it out.  i mean it is interesting that an author was sampled even if the artist sampling was beyoncé.  plus i like to be informed on pop culture matters though i may not always be a fan of who is making the news.   

i have to add i hadn't seen adichie's TED talk prior to reading the novel (i actually just watched it right now in the middle of writing this post.  it is amazing, and you should watch it too.  well after you finish reading my post, i will add a link at the end.)

so i can not stop singing the praises of this book!!!  since i have finished it, i have told at least 5 people to read americanah.  heck 40 pages into it, i was trying to convince people to

pick it up!   and its a pretty thick book, 477 but i fell easily into it and the story moves quickly.  

i enjoyed this book immensely because it worked on so many levels.  on the surface, it is a love story.  ifemelu and obinze fell in love as teens at school.  ifemelu moved to america for school, had a dramatizing incident and stopped all contact with obinze.  meanwhile, obinze moved to england to start his own life.  in the end, they both end up back in lagos, but you have to read to find out what happens.

but on another level is a discussion on race in america.  and flavorpill was on pointe when it explained how race and politics are addressed "without feeling too weighty."  race is addressed via ifemelu's blog called Raceteenth or Various Observations About American Blacks (Those Formerly Known as Negroes) by a Non-American Black.  in her blog ifemelu discussed things she encountered in life while exposing the existence of race and discrimination in america that believes it is colorblind and equal.  her posted discussed topics like natural hair, having a white partner, and classism being a cover for actual racism. the book also addressed obama and his run for presidency, ifemelu not only volunteers to help his campaign but also blogs about the obamas, michelle being a role model for dark-skinned black women and barack's mixed ethnicity. 

through her characters, adichie exposed the gray matter that dwells within all of us when it comes to race.  for example, i don't know how it happen, maybe it's because i am a mutt but i forget that i am not a white american.  there is a quiz that ifemelu posted on her blog that identified

me as a privilege white but i am not.  i recognize that my family is very americanized and maybe that is the cause for my lack of cultural identity.  my grandparents and parents grew up in the era which immigrants wanted to assimilated. they denied their heritage in an attempt to be accepted by american society.  this denial is exemplified by the fact that my mom, aunts and uncles speak only english.  and though i did grow up during the push for multiculturalism, i think it more of an learning of different cultures versus being empowered by your own.  though i can not pinpoint how exactly it has come to be but i do identify more with the white american experience than with that of filipinos or mexicans.

in addition to this, though i may be accepting of all races and cultures, i am still racism.  i do stereotypes individuals based on their race and make racist comments as jokes.  my racism may not be overt but it does exist.  

i don't have the answer to the race problem in america.  i am not sure if anyone does but it is important to at least talk about race.  and that is what i enjoyed most about americanah, adichie wrote a beautiful love story between two individuals while adding a discussion of races that was thought-provoking without being too preachy.

anyway, pick up this book!  seriously a great read!!!  oh and check out adichie's

TED talk too!

ps i have to add i did not like beyoncé's sampling of adichie's talk.  i mean it seemed like a cool concept but then i heard "flawless" and was like really b?  you took adichie's beautiful talk about being a feminist and empowering you girls and juxtaposition with lyrics that contradict what was being said.  the talk addresses the fact that women should not be in competition yet the following part is all about about her posting aroubd being flawless.  also the bow down bitches part seemed too aggressive?  i mean it seemed to reinforce this idea of the angry and aggressive feminist which the talk was trying to dispel as a myth.  i don't know it seemed like a misusing of the talk to me.