Fashion, book, movie and music addicts!

Because of all the plane rides I've taken this month, I've had some pretty solid reading time. One of best ones I've read and a current favorites is The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz. It is the debut novel from Diaz, whose first book was a collection of short stories. From the moment I started reading it, I was loathed to give it up and only the charm of a new city was a good enough reason to put it down.

The story revolves around Oscar, who’s unfortunate obesity gets in the way of his search for love and career. It is also the story of his family particularly their life in the Dominican Republic and their subsequent flight to New York. Woven into this family story is the greater saga of the country and their travails under the dictator Rafael Trujillo. But this is no normal family saga because of the involvement of fuku. Fuku for all of us unitiated is a curse, one that afflicts the whole island –especially personified by the dicatator Trujillo and unfortunately for Oscar, his family is particularly cursed. You might say that this book is chock full of magical realism but it is vastly different from the fiction of other Latin American authors such as Allende or even Cortazar. And this is due in large part to Junot’s writing. His writing is by turns, engaging, imaginatively complex and humourous. It is impressive the way his language captures just the right tone of humor and pathos and even the tough street talk of the characters.

What I particularly loved about this book was the way it incorporated elements of fantasy and science fiction. There are references to Tolkien, Norton and Le Guin and it is done in such an innovative way that you can't help but be impressed. I'd never seen a book do such a great job referencing the science fiction/fantasy genre. If you’re not a fan of such genres, you will appreciate the flashes of Gabriel Garcia Marquez and even Herman Melville. Small wonder then that Junot gathered such prizes such as the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for 2008 and the National Book Critics Circle Award for 2007. This totally cool book is a must read!