Maria Gutierrez

This book... first of all the representation in it felt *chef’s kiss* IMMACULATE. 

I loved the fact that it focuses on the culture and traditions of Latin American culture, the inclusivity of different countries such as Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Colombia and Haiti and how they all come together to celebrate the brujx traditions. 

The main character, Yadriel, is a trans boy who does not feel truly welcome by his community and family and wants to prove to them that he is a real boy and he can be a brujo, which he eventually is succesfull at doing. I had never read a book before about. a hispanic trans character and not only it was refreshing but I felt like I learned a lot from it. And also the fact that the author never writes Yadriel death name is just amazing!!!

Furthermore, the romance in the novel was so pure and lovely. Yadriel falls in love with a spirit, Julian (who is one of my favorites character). Their love felt genuine and unexpected when you first start reading the novel.

Now let’s discuss the villain in the story, *SPOILER ALERT* the fact that the bad guy ended up being one of Yadriel’s closest family members and one of the few who he thought really understood him was somewhat predictable and of course, heartbreaking for Yadriel. However, without spoiling anything else I really loved the ending of the story.

The novel Carry On by Rainbow Rowell is a light, funny and amusing read with its moments of darkness and drama of course. I loved this book, which I was not expecting to.

Reading this book just made me fell... good. I spent hours devouring this story, aching for more. The romance, the diversity and inclusivity, the creation of deep, multidimensional character, etc, it just made the reader want to read more and more.

Since the book is a fanfiction of the Harry Potter series I think is worth mentioning some of the differences in execution when it came to tropes and characters. Both novels follow the story of “the chosen one” but although both Simon and Harry came from an unstable family situation, Harry knew who his parents were and harry lived in a home, whereas Simon stayed his youth living in foster homes even after his own father, Davy, found him.

Another big difference and one that I really wanted to touch on was the major differences between Dumbledore and The Mage. Dumbledore although far perfect is presented more as an ambiguous  lawfully good character, whereas The Mage is so corrupted by power that raids magicians homes, creates an army of young students, and kills a person. The Mage is selfish and obsessed with the prophecy of the best magician, one who will save them all. 

Changing the subject a bit, the romance in this novel was so lovely! Although enemies of lovers is a common trope I enjoyed the way Rowell developed their relationship, and I absolutely loved how easy it was for Simon to accept that although he had never thought about the fact that he could be gay or bi, he was sure that felt attracted to Baz and that he liked him as more than roommates or friends.

*SPOILER ALERT*

“... and I’m left thinking maybe Tyler’s in heaven , whispering things to the drops of rain as they trip on their tiny tails and splatter onto the earth, and I imagine that they know how it is to be black in America, to have a destiny of falling, to have a fate of dying on impact.”

This book feels so utterly real and not only because it is semi-autobiographical, but because it speaks in volumes even if you are not a black person. It calls the reader out and with a heartbreaking rawness teaches us the reality of minorities, especially the black community. The book focuses a lot on police brutality, it is graphic and violent, because that is the reality of the society we live in. People die everyday solely based on the color of their skin.  

One of the major themes of this novel is grief, how it feels to lose someone that you love, how someone keeps living after that, the impact it has on your life. The way the author writes about grief feels so familiar, having lost my mom, I felt understood by the character in a way that I hadn't felt understood by many people. 

Marvin loses his twin brother to police brutality. From the very beginning of the novel there are several encounters between the characters and the police; no matter where they are or what are they doing, no matter how innocent they are, the officers always see them as a threat, because they live in the hood, because they dress like “thugs”, because they talk back, when in reality it is simply because they are black. 

“ Wake up! This trip doesn’t end when you get back home. You never get off this train. You two are mentors now, that means that every year they’re going to drag you out and broadcast the details of your romance. Every year your private life becomes theirs. From now on your job is to be a distraction so that people forget what the real problems are.“

The girl on fire comes back. After Katniss and Peeta won the last hunger games they are forced to do a tour as the winners, while they are doing so Katniss feels that there is a rebellion forming and that she is a symbol for them. She is the mockingjay and the key to their liberation. 

Yet, President Snow proves that he is still very much in control by making a special Hunger Games for that year, in which the previous winners form each district can be chosen to compete once again. Through Katniss character, the audience is presented with other raw realities such as mental health; she is struggling with PTSD from the las Hunger Games. 

Even if you won the game once, you are not truly safe ever. The government still has control over your life. 

"Hope, it is the only thing stronger than fear. A little hope is effective, a lot is dangerous. This fact is fine, as long as it's contained.”

The Hunger Games is a beautifully filmed movie with amazing performances. The dystopian film focuses on the oppression of the lower class and the abuse of power by the upper class. The movie touches really important themes such as classicism and pretty much how we need to “eat the rich” thus ending the major wealth gap.

In my opinion, the message would have been more powerful if the story was told by a woman of color because even in the fictional world of Panem there is visible racism and although the whole country was oppressed, POC were facing even bigger challenges. The fact that the only important black character died leaves the story lacking a lot of diversity. Although, Rue’s death had an effect on Katniss and it became a symbol of rebellion, it still took a lot of the poc representation from the movie.

“When you spend your whole life living in a hole,” he said, “the only way you can go is up.”

I remember having seen the movie version of the book when I was in middle school. I though that reading it now for the first time it was going to feel too familiar and maybe even boring but my experience was not like that on the slightest. This novel was a beautiful read. 

Although is supposed to be a children’s book, I couldn’t put it down and when I was busy and couldn’t read, I would listen to the audiobook instead. I would have loved to read the book when I saw the movie, at that age I would have loved it even more than i do now.

Holes tells the story of Stanley and how, by a genuine, naive mistake, he ends up in a reformative camp where children are forced to senselessly dig every single day. The experiences Stanley goes through, along with the friendships he gathers, make this book so lovely and memorable. 

“If I had one day when I didn't have to be all confused and I didn't have to feel that I was ashamed of everything. If I felt that I belonged someplace. You know?“

It’s always a bit strange watching older films (50s and 60s) at this modern age, the separation of time seems to somehow also separate the audience from the characters. The plot always seem overdramatic, and of course, there is the shameless misogyny and racism of the time.Yet, this particular film focuses on an issue that is still valid today; the complexities of adolescence. The teenage years are a time of confusion and discovery. A Rebel Without A Cause does an adequate job at exploring this, the suburban teenager feeling trapped by the complexities of their world. 

The most troubled character by far is certainly Plato, from the beginning of the movie it is explained that as a way of demanding attention he killed puppies with his mother’s gun. Plato, like most of the other young characters, feels misunderstood and lost; neglected by his rich parents and all alone in that big old house. Plato’s ending seems to be another message, that quick death, that ephemeral live of those young that want to live too fast or that are scared of living at all. 

The character of Judy is quite interesting as well. She is a young woman that desperately wants the acceptance and adoration of her father but that is now at an age where is father does not see her as a girl nor a woman. So, if she acts too needy she’s being childish, and if she acts too adult-like, she’s being “a dirty tramp.” Judy is desperate for love and that would explain why she so quickly calls what she feels for Jim love. 

Finally, there is Jim; he is young, handsome, and volatile only when called a “chicken.”  Jim feels this need for defending his manhood because according to him, his dad is constantly being emasculated by his mother and is unable of defending himself. Jim is looking for someone to blame his anger on, he feels controlled by his mother need of putting the blame on anyone else but herself and betrayed by his father’s cowardice. In addition, death is a wake up call for Jim, first when Buzz dies and then when his friend Plato does. 

“Older than I look, younger than I ought to be. My skin is a riddle not to be solved, and even letting go of everything I love won’t offer me the answer... Everyday I wake up a little more linear, a little less lost, and one day I’ll be one of the women who says ‘I had the most charming dream,’ and i’ll mean it.”

This novel was definitely not what I was expecting. it uncovers the magical yet dark world of children’s minds to the point where it makes the reader question the veracity of the character’s worlds and the reader’s own world. At first, I thought that the doors, and the different types of worlds categorized as either Nonsense, Logic or something in between, was merely a metaphor for madness. At least, that’s what some quotes from the book made me think, the one at the beginning is one of them. This quote is said by Sumi, who was definitely my favorite character but unfortunately we don’t get to see much of her. 

The book really delves into the escapist tendencies of children and even adults, and the consequences of such thing. What happens when they come back from the other universe. These teens feel like they have lost their true home, a place that both chose them and allowed them to choose, not that force them to be there. 

The novel was definitely beautiful, fun and a nice read. However, I think it developed way too quickly, as if it did not let the reader stay in one place for too long; not enough time to mourn a character or to understand the complexities that shaped them. Additionally,  ending was somewhat disappointing if I’m being honest...

*spoiler alert*

to discover that the killer was the sweet girl with dreams of becoming a vampire did not feel genuine, and her reasoning behind the murders was specially senseless. I guess that it could represent the perils of disassociating too much from reality, but still I was let down by it.