The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

Energična, duhovita, brutalna, duhovita, tužna, duhovita knjiga. Oskar je štreber, on je debeo, on je zaluđen naučnom fantastikom i Tolkinom, on je užasno zaljubljive prirode i sve bi učinio u ime ljubavi, ali slaba mu fajda. Kroz prizmu Oskarovog nesretnog života otkriva nam se svijet emigranata iz Dominikanske Republike u SADu i njihov pokušaj prilagođavanja i sudbina Oskarove...more

Energična, duhovita, brutalna, duhovita, tužna, duhovita knjiga. Oskar je štreber, on je debeo, on je zaluđen naučnom fantastikom i Tolkinom, on je užasno zaljubljive prirode i sve bi učinio u ime ljubavi, ali slaba mu fajda. Kroz prizmu Oskarovog nesretnog života otkriva nam se svijet emigranata iz Dominikanske Republike u SADu i njihov pokušaj prilagođavanja i sudbina Oskarove porodice kroz generacije kao žrtve Trujillove diktature i njihovog ličnog prokletsva iliti fuku-a. Jedan Diazov citat koji objašnjava činjenicu da knjiga vrvi španskim (riječima i rečenicama) koje ustvari namjerno nisu prevedene: "Želio sam da se svi u jednom trenutku dok čitaju moju knjigu osjećaju kao imigranti. Da nailaze na dijelove ili rečenice koje ne razumiju. I to može izazvati ljute reakcije kod čitatelja, ali to je dobro jer će tada ići pogledati o čemu se radi i potražit će druge knjige. Mi često zaboravljamo da velik dio onog što pročitamo ne razumijemo i najčešće to preskačemo. Ako ste imigrant, onda ste još više naviknuti na to da ne razumijete velike dijelove razgovora, velike dijelove onog što pročitate." Primjerak knjige koja je meni došla u ruke je Buybook-ovo izdanje i prevod je radila izvjesna Mirjana Evtov. Sjajno je to odradila!   hide

This is the best book I have read in years--and I read a lot. The story is about a Dominican-American kid named Oscar, a fat sci-fi fantasy nerd growing up among the macho, streetwise Dominicanos of Paterson, New Jersey. But reducing this book to its plot doesn't come close to doing it justice. The prose is jazzy, sharp and luminous, a wild mix of Spanglish, Dominican slang,...more

This is the best book I have read in years--and I read a lot. The story is about a Dominican-American kid named Oscar, a fat sci-fi fantasy nerd growing up among the macho, streetwise Dominicanos of Paterson, New Jersey. But reducing this book to its plot doesn't come close to doing it justice. The prose is jazzy, sharp and luminous, a wild mix of Spanglish, Dominican slang, Tolkein and comic book references, and hip-hop diction. There is a gently amused tone to it all, even when the author is relating some truly horrific events. The book also provides a pretty good overview of the last seventy years of Dominican politics and culture. The book itself, the characters in it, and Diaz's prose style defy stereotype and genre. It's an amazing mix of disparate elements, and it sounds like the voice I sometimes hear in my own head when I slip into the role of narrator. It's the most close-to-perfect book I've read in years.   hide

Oscar Wao was a strange book for me to read. I would not recommend it but at the same time I wouldn't discourage someone who wanted to give it a go. If you look at reviews on Amazon - you can see by the many mixed reviews - some people LOVED it & others (like me) just didn't get it. It was too discombobulated for me going from present to past, back & forth. Some parts are written in Spanish which...more

Oscar Wao was a strange book for me to read. I would not recommend it but at the same time I wouldn't discourage someone who wanted to give it a go. If you look at reviews on Amazon - you can see by the many mixed reviews - some people LOVED it & others (like me) just didn't get it. It was too discombobulated for me going from present to past, back & forth. Some parts are written in Spanish which I could guess at their meaning but didn't know for sure how it translated. At many points I was like "what did i just read?" & "HOW does it relate to the story?". After reading reviews I have a better understanding of the book hence why 2 stars & not one.   hide

I notice that a lot of reviews mention the Spanish that is interspersed throughout the novel. I don't have any Spanish and my attitude was that I did not have to try to translate it - just note it. I thought it was good to feel the alienation of being immersed in an environment that you don't fully understand. Exactly what the Dominican diaspora would experience - but for them a thousand-fold...more

I notice that a lot of reviews mention the Spanish that is interspersed throughout the novel. I don't have any Spanish and my attitude was that I did not have to try to translate it - just note it. I thought it was good to feel the alienation of being immersed in an environment that you don't fully understand. Exactly what the Dominican diaspora would experience - but for them a thousand-fold greater, I'm sure. I was so sorry when I Googled 'Dominican republic' and received confirmation that Trujillo was a real person and the horrors described were real. I struggle to understand how these regimes and atrocities are possible throughout human history.   hide

When I hear a book is good, I generally agree with critics. Even if I'm not a fan of the subject matter or the way they attacked it, there's something that pulls you into the story, whether it be the prose or just the certain way they can draw you into their world. Oscar Wao was an extreme disappointment. The writing is so stream-of-conscious that I could hardly keep up, least...more

When I hear a book is good, I generally agree with critics. Even if I'm not a fan of the subject matter or the way they attacked it, there's something that pulls you into the story, whether it be the prose or just the certain way they can draw you into their world. Oscar Wao was an extreme disappointment. The writing is so stream-of-conscious that I could hardly keep up, least of all enjoy the story that Diaz was laying out. Sometimes his writing was magical, and then it would slide right back into the mess of confusion and often unrelated tangents that were neither amusingly quirky or interesting. The main plot-- that of Oscar and his youth-- was the only thing that kept me reading this novel. This was not out of fun or interest either, but such extreme pity for this poor boy, and that feeling was one that I couldn't shake for the remainder of the novel. There was nothing fun or deep about it... just sad. If the focus had stayed on Oscar, I could have grudgingly accepted this novel, but instead it abruptly changes to characters that we barely know and often aren't introduced to until half-way through their narrative. In the midst of these shifting viewpoints are wordy, dull tales of the history of the Domincian Republic, written in a way that's supposed to be keeping the non-fiction fresh, but instead makes it almost unbearable to read. An incredibly difficult book to plow through, and it gave me little joy or insight. Utterly and completely disappointing.   hide

A fantastically written and engaging book that relates to the true American family. It encompasses that of intrigue, suspense, sadness, and hilarity within the scope of the family dynamics in which Oscars Dominican family is of heritage. Life can be a blessing and a curse depending on the paths in which we decide to take. In Oscars families impending decision making we can blame in all on fu'ku...more

A fantastically written and engaging book that relates to the true American family. It encompasses that of intrigue, suspense, sadness, and hilarity within the scope of the family dynamics in which Oscars Dominican family is of heritage. Life can be a blessing and a curse depending on the paths in which we decide to take. In Oscars families impending decision making we can blame in all on fu'ku otherwise known as Fuck you.   hide

3 1/2 stars. Widely hyped a few years ago, won the Pulitzer, yada yada yada...I wanted to love this book, but didn't!! I think Diaz is a good writer but this book is so disjointed and all over the place. After reading I discovered this was a short story that Diaz expanded to novel, which explains a lot. The narrator keeps commenting on what's to come in Oscar's life but the ending does not...more

3 1/2 stars. Widely hyped a few years ago, won the Pulitzer, yada yada yada...I wanted to love this book, but didn't!! I think Diaz is a good writer but this book is so disjointed and all over the place. After reading I discovered this was a short story that Diaz expanded to novel, which explains a lot. The narrator keeps commenting on what's to come in Oscar's life but the ending does not quite live up to the narrator's build up. What I took from this book and most interesting to me was the history of the Dominican Republic (esp. Trujillo's "reign of terror"). I would equate this to a mix between Confederacy of Dunces and the magical realism of Latin American writers. Most frustrating is the constant use of Spanish without any hint as to meaning. I can read some Spanish (from years of high school spanish) and often figure out meaning based on other references but Diaz uses Spanish phrases without any context or hint at their meaning. Overall? Eh, I kinda liked it!   hide

This book was a total miss for me and it really kind of bums me out because NPR gave it such glowing review. The sad part is that since I am totally a comic’s geek I got every reference in the book (it even begins with a quote by Galactus). I guess where I got lost was the fact that every character is a tragedy. Nothing good happens to them and they really don’t have a true...more

This book was a total miss for me and it really kind of bums me out because NPR gave it such glowing review. The sad part is that since I am totally a comic’s geek I got every reference in the book (it even begins with a quote by Galactus). I guess where I got lost was the fact that every character is a tragedy. Nothing good happens to them and they really don’t have a true connection to each other outside of being in the same family. There is no plot to the book; it is a look at characters in a family believed to be cursed. I could only make halfway through before giving up on it. I also think it might have had more draw for me if he had not used so much Spanish as well. I feel like I missed a lot of great points he was trying to make because I simply did not know what he was saying.   hide

What did I do to deserve suffering through this book? It kept coming up as recommended based on my purchase history at Amazon.... I hate to think something led the computer in the sky to believe I would like this book. I kept reading long after I reached dislike, partly in hopes it would improve, and partly to try and figure out how it won a Pulitzer Prize. Oh well, I often disagree with...more

What did I do to deserve suffering through this book? It kept coming up as recommended based on my purchase history at Amazon.... I hate to think something led the computer in the sky to believe I would like this book. I kept reading long after I reached dislike, partly in hopes it would improve, and partly to try and figure out how it won a Pulitzer Prize. Oh well, I often disagree with movie critics too. I have no problem with dark or deep books, but this didn't work for me. I gave it a lot of thought and have concluded that what is missing here is a single character that I like. I think I need that. The story can be very dismal, but I've got to have at least one character, someone, that I find tolerable as a person. As you can tell, I do not recommend this book.   hide