Average customer rating:
- Unforgettable
- horrifically false
- Wonderful read, a very powerful story
- A lot to think about
- So Good, So sad...could not put it down.
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Jesus Land: A Memoir
Julia Scheeres
Manufacturer: Counterpoint
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1582433542 |
Book Description
The memoir the New York Times Book Review called "heart-stopping and enraging" and about which Entertainment Weekly raved "Jesus Land will break your heart and mend it again"
Sinners go to: HELL. Rightchuss go to: HEAVEN. The end is neer: REPENT. This here is: JESUS LAND.
Julia Scheeres stumbles across these signs along the side of a cornfield while out biking with her adopted brother David. It's the mid-1980s, they're sixteen years old, and have just moved to rural Indiana, a landscape of cottonwood trees and trailer parks--and a racism neither of them is prepared for. While Julia is white, her close relationship with David, who's black, makes them both outcasts. At home, a distant mother--more involved with her church's missionaries than with her own children--and a violent father only compound their problems. When the day comes that high-school hormones, racist brutality, and a deep-seated restlessness prove too much to bear, their parents' solution is reform school--in the Dominican Republic.
In this riveting memoir, first-time author Scheeres takes us with her from the Midwest to a place beyond imagining. Surrounded by natural beauty, the Escuela Caribe is nonetheless characterized by a disciplinary regime that demands its teens repent for their sins under boot-camp conditions. Julia and David's striving to make it through is told here with startling immediacy, extreme candor, and not an ounce of malice.
Customer Reviews:
Unforgettable.......2007-10-17
I will never forget this book. I too am angry. Angry at Julia for letting her brother be treated the way he was, and that she reunited with her family apparently readily if she went to Calif. with her mother to check out colleges. David's story breaks my heart, I will see him in heaven. Julia's story, on the other hand, just ticks me off. I'm probably not giving her a fair shake, but David's love for here was apparent and she was nearly as unworthy as the parents.
horrifically false.......2007-10-14
This was a captivating story, but was greatly fictionalized. There was much 'literary license' taken, and as in politics, much extra padding to create sales or sympathy. I am saddened that so many people think her memoir is truthful, and that they choose to believe it as such. I wonder what motivated her to misrepresent truth as she has, when a true memoir would have been just as gripping. The book was hard to put down, and if I hadn't seen her smiling face in photos from the school, and know the facts as they were, I would be horrified too. But things weren't LIKE that there, and there are many kids who benefitted from the relationships formed from their time there. Reading the comments listed here is unnerving...to know how influential someone can be even when speaking untruths. Sounds like politics to me...
Wonderful read, a very powerful story.......2007-09-29
Get this book, very powerful story and the author takes you page by page with ease and you can not wait to read further.
A lot to think about.......2007-09-19
I spent much more time reflecting on this book than it took to read it.
First, it made mad. Really mad. I wanted to call the White House, the State Department, the Dominican Embassy, the governor of Indiana. I contemplated the 101st Airborne's helicopters flying in low over the hill and liberating the camp by force.
After a while it occurred to me that Scheeres' experience was certainly one of many. How many other children are being abused? How many have been killed in these camps? Is this really different from Chinese or Soviet re-education camps? Does anyone listen to Jesus' words when they read them in the Bible?
In the end, easy to miss that among all the hate, this is a story of the love between a girl and her brother. I rejoice that she escaped to California, got married, and had a baby! I don't think Julia Scheeres and her story will ever leave me.
So Good, So sad...could not put it down........2007-09-08
I just finished Jesus Land. It is going to take some time for me to recover from this powerful book.
Julia's views of racism, hypocrisy, control, and child abuse are both poignant and disturbing. It was enraging and difficult to read about how her so-called Jesus-loving parents beat both her black brothers in the garage, sparing her until much later.
Her relationship with her adopted brother David is beautiful. It renews my faith in the power of human connection, blood-related or not.
I finished this book in a couple of days. I left it at my doctor's office today, and had to drive to the bookstore to finish the last 2 chapters, because I was dying to know the outcome.
I highly recommend this book.
Book Description
Raised in the Dominican Republic, signed by the Seattle Mariners, and released by the Minnesota Twins, David Ortiz landed in baseball-crazy Boston, of all places. Generally regarded as an underachiever to that point in his career, Ortiz blossomed into one of the most feared and adored sluggers in baseball while altering the course of the game's history, helping Boston win its first World Series in eighty-six years and thereby breaking the infamous "Curse of the Bambino."
Along the way, Ortiz established his place as a truly Ruthian figure in the annals of our national pastime: an imposing figure in the batter's box, yet an endearing man to the young, particularly in his native Dominican Republic, where he has focused his charitable efforts on improving the health of children. The son of two caring parents, and a loving father of three, Ortiz is a hero to many.
Now, in his memoir, the man affectionately known as "Big Papi" recounts his life from growing up in an impoverished area of the Dominican Republic (where baseball is king) to his ascension in Boston (where he became one). Ortiz discusses, in detail, his historic and record-setting performances as a member of the Red Sox, his exploding popularity, the challenges of playing in Boston, and life in the Red Sox clubhouse.
BIG PAPI is a unique memoir by a charismatic man who appeals to young and old, on the baseball field or off.
Customer Reviews:
big papi.......2007-08-02
im a kid from dallas,tx and im a huge red sox fan. i read this book at camp and i loved it. it talks about the red sox, big papi, and other teams he has played for. it talks about red sox history and shows how good of a guy david ortiz is. this is the best book ive ever read.
Entertaining.......2007-08-02
An entertaining book about a good ball-player. (Probably much better reading if you are a Red Sox fan). David Ortiz is another example of what one can do if they put their mind to it. A quick read, but only entertaining.
Big Papi: My Story of Big Dreams and Big Hits.......2007-06-08
I have been a Red Sox and die-hard Boston sport fan since the mid 50's and have read many sports books especially on the local teams and personalities. Big Papi was a very fast reading and insightful story on major league and minor league baseball, the business and individual personal side, as well as the plight of the many foreign players bonding together in a strange land and the brotherhood that remains among them.
A completely different caring side of Pedro Martinez for his fellow countrymen was a interesting sidebar. Tony Massarotti from the Boston Herald does a excellent job in telling David Ortiz's story, a real gentle caring giant with much more than the "extraordinary ability to perform under pressure" and the leader that ended fifty years of misery for me. I wish my father and grandfathers were still alive to have enjoyed it. Thank you Papi.
Interesting Insight into David Ortiz.......2007-06-01
Co-written with Tony Massarotti of the Boston Herald, "Big Papi" is the autobiography of David Ortiz, all-star slugger for the Boston Red Sox. Written as if Ortiz was talking directly to the reader, the book covers Ortiz's childhood in the Dominican Republic, his career in the minor leagues, his time with the Minnesota Twins, and of course his career with the Boston Red Sox. The book covers some of his achievements such as leading the all-star balloting, breaking Jimmie Foxx's home run record, and of course the 2004 playoffs - beating the Yankees and going on to win the World Series. While most of the book is in Ortiz's voice, there are a few chapters written by others that discuss the role Pedro Martinez had in bringing Ortiz to Boston; his friendship with Torii Hunter; and how Theo Epstein was able to bring Ortiz to play for Boston.
"Big Papi" is an interesting look at a talented baseball player. Having the book read as if Ortiz is talking directly to the reader is a nice touch (although the constant use of the word "bro" got to me after a while). The book has many fascinating aspects starting with Ortiz's childhood in the Dominican Republic when he and his friends would use anything they could as baseballs (like the heads off their sisters' dolls). One of the most fascinating aspects of Ortiz's career is that Minnesota released him after they tried to trade him and no other team wanted him. Boston came off looking good by claiming him but it's interesting to read that even they had no idea how good he could be. Other interesting bits in the book include the fact that he likes to wear a bigger uniform because he likes it to be loose and how he trains in the off-season. To his credit Ortiz is honest about admitting his mistakes, including his five game suspension during the 2004 season for throwing bats from the dugout onto the field in protest over an umpire's call. Interestingly enough, while he says he doesn't hate the Yankees he writes far more about beating them in the 2004 playoffs than he does about winning the World Series (which barely gets a full page mention). Although he talks little about his family life for privacy reasons, the brief glimpses into his personal life are interesting. Readers will be moved as he talks about the death of his mother in a car accident. And a story of how he ended up with a line of children and parents at his house on Halloween looking for candy and pictures with him is a fascinating insight into the drawbacks of being famous.
David Ortiz fans will love "Big Papi".
GREAT BOOK,EVEN GREATER PERSON.......2007-05-29
This was a GREAT book.I couldn't put it down.Very easy read.It truely shows what a GREAT human being and how "down to earth" Papi really is.I recommend it to every baseball fan,a MUST for EVERY Sox fan.
Book Description
In 1493 Christopher Columbus led a fleet of seventeen ships and more than twelve hundred men to found a royal trading colony in America. Columbus had high hopes for his settlement, which he named La Isabela after the queen of Spain, but just five years later it was in ruins. It remains important, however, as the first site of European settlement in America and the first place of sustained interaction between Europeans and the indigenous Taínos. Kathleen Deagan and José María Cruxent now tell the story of this historic enterprise. Drawing on their ten-year archaeological investigation of the site of La Isabela, along with research into Columbus-era documents, they contrast Spanish expectations of America with the actual events and living conditions at America's first European town. Deagan and Cruxent argue that La Isabela failed not because Columbus was a poor planner but because his vision of America was grounded in European experience and could not be sustained in the face of the realities of American life. Explaining that the original Spanish economic and social frameworks for colonization had to be altered in America in response to the American landscape and the non-elite Spanish and Taíno people who occupied it, they shed light on larger questions of American colonialism and the development of Euro-American cultural identity
Customer Reviews:
A Tremendous Example of Historical Research.......2004-05-18
I read it in three days.
A must have book for anyone interested in the Conquista and early colonization of the Caribbean and America in General. I also believe that anyone interested in the life and deeds of Christopher Columbus should read this work.
The authors' combination of archaeological excavation with documentary research is excellent and should serve as an example for future research projects. Furthermore, some of the discoveries they made will be quite unexpected and surprising for the general public, and even for those familiar with their work.
Despite the fact that both Deagan and Cruxent are highly regarded experts in Caribbean archaeology, they have written a book that can be enjoyed by the general public.
Amazon.com
In a 1930s Dominican Republic village, the scream of a woman in labor rings out like the shot heard around Hispaniola. Every detail of the birth scene--the balance of power between the middle-aged Señora and her Haitian maid, the babies' skin color, not to mention which child is to survive--reverberates throughout Edwidge Danticat's Farming of Bones. In fact, rather than a celebration of fecundity, the unexpected double delivery gels into a metaphor for the military-sponsored mass murder of Haitian emigrants. As the Señora's doctor explains: "Many of us start out as twins in the belly and do away with the other."
But Danticat's powerful second novel is far from a currently modish victimization saga, and can hold its own with such modern classics as One Hundred Years of Solitude and The Color Purple. Its watchful narrator, the Señora's shy Haitian housemaid, describes herself as "one of those sea stones that sucks its colors inside and loses its translucence once it's taken out into the sun." An astute observer of human character, Amabelle Désir is also a conduit for the author's tart, poetic prose. Her lover, Sebastian, has "arms as wide as one of my bare thighs," while the Señora's complicit officer husband is "still shorter than the average man, even in his military boots."
The orphaned Amabelle comes to assume almost messianic proportions, but she is entirely fictional, as is the town of Alegría where the tale begins. The genocide and exodus, however, are factual. Indeed, the atrocities committed by Dominican president Rafael Trujillo's army back in 1937 rival those of Duvalier's Touton Macoutes. History has rendered Trujillo's carnage much less visible than Duvalier's, but no less painful. As Amabelle's father once told her, "Misery won't touch you gentle. It always leaves its thumbprints on you; sometimes it leaves them for others to see, sometimes for nobody but you to know of." Thanks to Danticat's stellar novel, the world will now know. --Jean Lenihan
Book Description
In 1937, Rafael Trujillo, President of the Dominican Republic, decided to rid his country of the many Haitians who worked in the cane fields. The characters here are fiction but the story is not. Amabell Desirt is a young Haitian orphaned at age eight and rescued by a Dominican family where she later becomes a maid. She is in love with a cane worker on a nearby farm. When she fears that the army has taken him, she gathers her few belongings and begins the long trek over the mountains in hopes of meeting him across the Dominican/Haitian border. What follows is a story of heartbreak, despair and terror. It is also a story of love, barbarity, dignity, and the only triumph possible for the persecuted: to endure.
"Ms. Danticat has successfully balanced what could have simply been a tale of woe with the redeeming power of bearing witness...eye-opening and delicately written." (New York Times Book Review)
Customer Reviews:
Moved..........2007-01-11
This was the first book I read from this author and I can tell you, it will not be the last. The writing is amazing. This author has an amazing gift with imagery! She will make you see (and feel) what she is writing about as if you are there in the story. It simply took my breath away! A must read. Tears came from my eyes as I read the last few lines in the book. The story captivated me.
"The Farming of Bones" is a chronological work of art. .......2006-12-12
Danticat moves beyond the stream of consciousness of "Krick Krack" and takes us on a voyage to the Dominican Republic and opens our hearts to the drama of a terrifyingly real era of hatred personified. Moving away from the quiet life of a plantation type existence.
The novel lands us in a holocaust situation where the host country becomes murderous and ravenous. The exciting adventure builds from a quiet from a pastoral love story into a fight for survival of Annabelle, the main character, who will be caught in your mind for days afterwards. Sebastien and Annabelle make an adoring couple, even though they are so young. Danticat masterfully evokes the atmosphere of hatred and terror of the massacre of Haitians by Dominicans through the eyes of Amabelle, who at the same time have only a few memories of her childhood and is incredibly uncertain future.
I thought this book was an excellent representation of how life was treated back in 1937 in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Not only was this a pure love story, but it was so factual and real. Danticat does an excellent job with her writing this novel, and deserves an applause. This book was touching and gripping at the same time. As a Haitian American I have always had an interest in understanding the history and problems which exist and have existed in Haiti, but in reading several texts I often find that the language of the genre is often uninteresting. For me Danticat changes that, she takes a historical event in Haitian history and structures it magnificently through the eyes of her young female character. I am glad that there is someone like Ms. Danticat in the literary world to help young Haitians like myself gain a better understanding of Haiti and its culture.
A Must Read! A Beautiful Book!.......2006-10-13
A beautiful book inside and out, I donated my copy to my school library where I work. I think this book about the life in Hispaniola or Haiti and Dominican Republic from the Haitian author's point of view is done poetically. If you have any interest in reading about the life and times in Haiti, this book should be on your must read list. It is one of those books that you don't forget about easily. You remember the story, the plot, the characters, and the crisis in Haiti at the time. Now with Haitian immigrants in our country, the problems are still there and we must not forget them too. This book is a beautiful piece of work that should be read in the classroom.
Fantastic/Horrific story.......2006-08-16
This book is a must read for anybody truly wanting to understand Haiti's history and its relationship to its neighboring countries. Although I felt like the story kind of fell apart at the end, none the less, it was a terrific, informative, important story to be told.
The Lovesong of Amabelle...........2006-07-04
Danticat's depiction of the life and times of Amabelle and her life-long love, Sebastien, is once again truly captivating. Set in the Dominican Republic in 1937, the author provides the backdrop for what came to be one of the most horrifically violent massacres in Haitian history. Yet, similar to Breath, Eyes, Memory, the scenery/historical backdrop does not fully dominate the text; that is, the individual stories of Amabelle and Sebastien are not shadowed by the Haitian massacre, but rather framed by it. The creative effect which Danticat achieves is very simple: she is able to render a distant massacre into a personal event which has the capacity to touch the lives and consciousness of the readers, moving us to action. Essentially, she brings public Haitian history into a private sphere by presenting the lives and tribulations of Amabelle and Sebastien. And, like the other texts which came before them, The Farming of Bones truly strikes a chord. Its simple truths resonate, and the characters are vivid, honest, and three-dimensional. A very public story becomes a personal one which brings the reader at the forefront of the Haitian massacre atrocities, as well as face to face with Amabelle and those who fell and rose before her.
Average customer rating:
- Gripping Novel
- captivating book!
- After We Were Free
- Such a beautiful book!
- Before we were Free
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Before We Were Free (Readers Circle)
Julia Alvarez
Manufacturer: Laurel Leaf
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Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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ASIN: 044023784X |
Amazon.com
What would life be like for a teen living under a dictatorship? Afraid to go to school or to talk freely? Knowing that, at the least suspicion, the secret police could invade your house, even search and destroy your private treasures? Or worse, that your father or uncles or brothers could be suddenly taken away to be jailed or tortured or killed? Such experiences have been all too common in the many Latin American dictatorships of the last 50 years. Author Julia Alvarez (How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents) and her family escaped from the Trujillo regime in the Dominican Republic when she was 10, but in Before We Were Free she imagines, through the stories of her cousins and friends, how it was for those who stayed behind.
Twelve-year-old Anita de la Torre is too involved with her own life to be more than dimly aware of the growing menace all around her, until her last cousins and uncles and aunts have fled to America and a fleet of black Volkswagens comes up the drive, bringing the secret police to the family compound to search their houses. Gradually, through overheard conversations and the explanations of her older sister, Lucinda, she comes to understand that her father and uncles are involved in a plot to kill El Jefe, the dictator, and that they are all in deadly peril. Anita's story is universal in its implications--she even keeps an Anne Frank-like diary when she and her mother must hide in a friend's house--and a tribute to those brave souls who feel, like Anita's father, that "life without freedom is no life at all." (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell
Book Description
Anita de la Torre never questioned her freedom living in the Dominican Republic. But by her 12th birthday in 1960, most of her relatives have emigrated to the United States, her Tío Toni has disappeared without a trace, and the government’s secret police terrorize her remaining family because of their suspected opposition of el Trujillo’s dictatorship.
Using the strength and courage of her family, Anita must overcome her fears and fly to freedom, leaving all that she once knew behind.
From renowned author Julia Alvarez comes an unforgettable story about adolescence, perseverance, and one girl’s struggle to be free.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews:
Gripping Novel .......2007-04-09
At times the book was a bit confusing it turned out to be a very gripping novel. You felt the emotions and you understood the characters and how they felt. It was very exciting and it had deep meaning about freedom and what it really means. You understood the hardships of dictatorship and the way it affects people's lives.You understood in what ways people under a dictatorship are effected and how they are not. By the second chapter I was pulled into the book and had trouble putting the book down. It was a truly spectacular work of fiction.
captivating book!.......2007-03-29
As the story started, it was just like a normal book beginning, they're at school and it's a regular day. As I read on, it got better and better! It turned into a great book with its ups and its downs. It is about a girl named Anita who struggles under a dictatorship while her father is involved in a plot to overthrow the dictator. I would suggest this book to people who like to see how life was like in a war, or under a dictatorship in this case.
After We Were Free.......2006-11-22
_Before We Were Free_ by Julia Alvarez is the enthralling story of a 12 year old living in the Dominican Republic during the embargo of the country in the 1960s. Anita de la Torre struggles with the normal growing pains that every preteen faces, as well as the worries, fears, and deaths that the people around her face due to the embargo. As more and more people disappear from her life, Anita is unsure whether or not she and her family will survive. When Anita finds out about her parents' plot to kill the dictator of their country, she realizes she was lying to herself about everything she thought she knew before. The writing is suspenseful, beautiful and and reflects that of a young girl.
Such a beautiful book!.......2006-07-21
Julia Alvarez is a wonderful writer! Before We Were Free is a great book about a brave girl named Anita who must escape Dominican Republic dictatorship. Her father and her uncle risk their lives trying to murder the dictator. This book is so suspenseful and beautifully written! Great work, Alvarez!
Before we were Free.......2006-05-30
I recommend the book Before we were Free to girls of all ages. I connected to the main character, Anita, because we are about the same age. I enjoyed the style of writing because just about everything was in present tense, like it was happening right then.
Product Description
This is a book that for the first time opens the doors to the public of the Marina at the luxurious gated community and Resort Casa de Campo in the southeast coast of the Dominican Republic. It is one of a king peace of art printed and bounded in Italy, with more than 300 breathtaking full color photographs and original drawing throughout. The book is a first class guided tour of the Marina at Casa de Campo in the hands of its creator, the architect Gianfranco Fini. Stunning aerial views, with never before seeing original drawings that will allow you enter into the mind of the architect to see the way of living that he was planning to create and vivid pictures of it actual beauty and style. The full size pictures throughout the book portrays a whole range of Caribbean style an elegant properties from inside out, from chic waterfront apartments and townhouses of less than 2,000 sqf. to magnificent Villas and Mansions above the 16,000 sqf. The foreword by Eduardo Martinez Lima (Central Romana Corporation CEO) will tell you the story of how two entrepreneurs convince them from an architectural and business point to build the Marina. Carmen Ortega (Arquitexto Magazine Editor) will introduce you to the Dominican Republic and Casa de Campo, while Carlo Montanaro (Editor of Dove, Dove Case and Style) will show you the way of living in the all year round summer at the Restaurants, Yacht Club, Art Galleries and, seaside houses of this luxurious destination.
Customer Reviews:
Great BOOK !!!.......2007-04-29
If you want to know more about architecture in the Caribbean, you have to read this book!
Caribbean Elegance.......2007-04-11
Through his work at la Marina, Casa de Campo, Gian Franco Fini captures the essence of refined architecture with a perfect air of Caribbean elegance.
A place to visit before you dies........2007-04-10
This is a book about one of those magical places that once you get there you don't want to leave. It's in the path of boats coming from Miami to the West Indies and is the place to see in the Caribbean before you die. Casa de Campo is the Caribbean most complete resort by far where any possible hobby in the world could practiced at world renowned conditions -besides skiing, except if you change it for water-sky-. The book about the Casa de Campo's Marina is definitely a 5 start in class, quality and content. This is the real thing in Caribbean Elegance and Luxury where you'll be able to find some of the most exclusive houses in the region.
The Best Keep Secret in the Caribbean unveils........2007-03-02
This is the only book available about Marinas from an architectural standpoint. Blueprints, sketches and more than 300 full-color pictures are a never ending source for one of the most luxurious approach to Caribbean Architecture. It's about the renowned Marina at Casa de Campo, La Romana, Dominican Republic and is a must for anyone willing see from the inside out as many options as possible to recreate a tropical paradise despite if it's and apartment or a houses under 2,000 sqf or a masterpiece above 20,000 sqf.
In contrast with W.R. Blain's book for "Marina Developments" -That is an excellent and maybe the only book about Marinas from a structural standpoint- this one is an architectural approach to Marinas and all the elements around it such as Yacht Club, Apartments, Houses, Restaurants and all related services. It's full of details and references in a text that is catchy and easy to read. My only concern was that I thought it was pricy in the first place despite that it was printed and bounded in Italy, but Blain's book is above the $250 and this one is more related to interior design and architecture so it's worth 5 out 5 starts.
Book Description
Catch the sunrise from the Caribbean's highest peak, dance in Spanish colonial streets during Carnival, glide through mangrove forests in search of gentle manatees - or find that deserted beach with pure white sand and clear blue seas. This essential guide will help you discover the many faces of this island paradise.
GET ACTIVE with our comprehensive coverage of the island's adventure sports, from hiking up Pico Duarte to world-class kiteboarding at Cabarete.
LIVE LIKE A LOCAL - discerning eating and entertainment listings show you where to get the best pastelito and catch the latest baseball game.
RELAX & RECHARGE in the best all-inclusive resorts or away from the crowds in a bungalow on the beach.
PLAN THE PERFECT GETAWAY with dedicated itineraries, including beach-hopping, national parks and the highlights of Santo Domingo.
¡HABLA ESPANOL! with the help of our practical Spanish language chapter.
Customer Reviews:
Dominican Adventures.......2007-01-09
I had only a brief five day visit to the DR in the Fall of 2006 for a wedding. Even though I was traveling with a local-speaking partner who had been to the DR many times, I still bought the Lonely Planet book and used it to help build an itinerary. I only had a chance to visit the Southeast corner of the country, as well as the city of Santo Domingo. The Lonely Planet guide helped me find clean and affordable accomodations for less than $50USD/night right on the beach where we rented a local fishing boat for two days to go diving and snorkeling in the local reefs. I'm looking forward to going back to explore other parts of the country. Rental cars were inexpensive, but driving in the DR is an experience as it almost seemed like a "free-for-all" at times. The main Interstate is well maintained, but a majority of the local roads are not. The Lonely Planet guide ~as always~ was accurate and helpful.
Nothing About Haiti.......2006-12-22
There is nothing in this book regarding Haiti. Amazon lists the title of this book as "Lonely Planet Dominican Republic (Lonely Planet Dominican Republic & Haiti)" and this isn't correct. Now I have to pay to ship it back to them. Thanks Amazon!
Best information for trip to the Dominican Republic.......2006-07-14
After a short visit to the D. R., I ordered this book in anticipation of my next trip there. I was surprised and pleased with the detailed information.
Complete, informative and useful.......2006-03-27
All that you would expect from a Lonely Planet Guide. Well worth buying for making a trip to the Dominican Republic. It will enable you to chose a resort to suite your taste, and to visit places that interest you.
Great insight for the off-the-beaten-path traveler.......2005-12-21
Go beyond the all-inclusive resorts to see the 'real' Santo Domingo and let the experts handle the logistics so you can experience the warmth of the Haitian people. Great resource, great research, well-done and easy to navigate.
Book Description
In The Devil behind the Mirror, Steven Gregory provides a compelling and intimate account of the impact that transnational processes associated with globalization are having on the lives and livelihoods of people in the Dominican Republic. Grounded in ethnographic fieldwork conducted in the adjacent towns of Boca Chica and Andrés, Gregory's study deftly demonstrates how transnational flows of capital, culture, and people are mediated by contextually specific power relations, politics, and history. He explores such topics as the informal economy, the making of a telenova, sex tourism, and racism and discrimination against Haitians, who occupy the lowest rung on the Dominican economic ladder. Innovative and beautifully written, The Devil behind the Mirror masterfully situates the analysis of global economic change in everyday lives.
Customer Reviews:
Well Done.......2007-08-22
This book brilliantly shows the structures in which people in tourist towns in the Dominican Republic today find themselves, and the different ways people cope with such structures.
It continues the solid tradition that Gregory established with his other works, like Black Corona.
Excellent insight into Dominican society........2007-04-06
I just spent a short time with a Church mission in a small Dominican community. So much of this study rings true, from injuries in motor scooter/car accidents, hair braiding, punitive power blackouts, and the constant concern about getting enough money to live on. On the plus side he also show the engaging personalities of so many people and their ability to live in a civil fashion despite the poverty. My one criticism might be the abstract terminology that the author uses to link the events and people he observes to world systems theory. It does not quite work and gets in the way of an otherwise excellent characterization of Dominican society. Given the paucity of authentic studies of Dominican society, it is fortunate that we have this work to enhance our understanding.
Amazon.com
With ten stories that move from the barrios of the Dominican Republic to the struggling urban communities of New Jersey, Junot Diaz makes his remarkable debut. Diaz's work is unflinching and strong, and these stories crackle with an electric sense of discovery. Diaz evokes a world in which fathers are gone, mothers fight with grim determination for their families and themselves, and the next generation inherits the casual cruelty, devestating ambivalence, and knowing humor of lives circumscribed by poverty and uncertainty. In
Drown, Diaz has harnessed the rhythms of anger and release, frustration and joy, to indelible effect.
Customer Reviews:
Provocative, Compelling & Heartbreaking.......2007-07-11
Only the second Dominican writer to be published in English in the US, Junot Diaz writes with such an authentic voice, such a clear cadence and rhythm, that your response to these perfect short storeis is a visceral as the writing itself. Often on the top of many people's favorite collections, these stories are exquisitely rough gems, bulletins from the abyss that simultaneously make you laugh out loud and wish you could hang with these sweet tigres. A must for anyone interested in learning how to develop voice, also essential for adolescents interested in global perspectives right in their own backyards.
Drowning in the Richness of Junot Diaz.......2007-04-26
This story collection started off a little choppy;
the best stories are at the end. The author
employs a stream of consciousness that reminds
you of Toni Morrison.
The characters' evolution as young adolescent teenage
boys is juxtaposed with Diaz's linear narration that
recalls the immigrant's life with desperation. Time
is not an issue in Diaz's work; the characters move
at their own paces and learn about life in their own
ways.
Though the machismo is a bit stifling at times, Diaz
is a gifted writer whom readers can expect many great
things from in the future.
Literary Mosaic.......2006-11-10
I read this book as part of my Latino Literature course at the University of Arizona. It's an amazing read that offers multicultural insight. The author 's writing style feels somewhat like Toni Morrisson's stream of consciousness effect. The book is not a linear straight-forward read, but rather separate pieces of writing that together act as a literary mosaic. It's a beautiful, at times surreal and other times gritty, read. I highly recommend; you will not regret the time spent invested in this book and will walk away with much.
A vision of hope.......2006-10-21
There are several recurrent themes running through this collection (the lost father, the regained father, the lost love, brotherhood, betrayal--often sexual) but the one I found most striking was that of facelessness.
You would think that facelessness is synonymous with invisibility, but here it is not. There is something within that facelessness, which makes the person all the more visible--scorned, pitied, hated, feared, and by some, treated with great kindness. The faced want the faceless to be gone for good because they represent the worst fear: That you, too, might one day suffer this fate where all that defines you to the outside world is stripped away, where you are a stranger in a strange land--where you are unloved and unlovable.
"Ysrael" is the boy with no face, his face having been mostly chewed off by a pig when he was an infant. Because of this he wears a mask and awaits a humanitarian intervention in which doctors in Canada are meant to restore his face. But this day never seems to come and he is scorned and beaten, but he is also an object of intense interest. There is something about him that fascinates the other boys; if only they could just see behind his mask. But even when they do, it infuriates them, repulses them. There is nothing in seeing his face that makes them feel better about themselves. It only makes them feel worse, more powerless.
Then when the reader sees the world from his point of view in "No Face," we understand that though he is deformed and maligned there is still great hope and beauty in his world, though he might not realize it. There is something strong deep within that will keep him alive despite the obstacles. He is a survivor. He will run.
So Ysrael stands for the best hope of all of the faceless within these stories--and the message is to keep going, keep running, keep moving forward no matter how people will push you down and try to keep you from being seen.
In that, a book, which might otherwise be bleak, I found quite hopeful. And so, in the end, what you have is a collection of stories that are beautiful, necessary, and heartbreaking. Read it.
I don't know what else to say........2006-10-10
I had to read "Drown" for my ENC1101, Written Communications I class. I was sorely disappointed in the school for making us read something that was offensive, poorly written, grammatically embarassing and just downright boring. The stories were disjointed, and read like a diary...which I didn't find a plus.
I then was assigned to write a number of essays on the book, which was SO hard because there isn't much to write about. The best way to approach this collection of short (very short) stories is to imagine yourself in the writer's shoes. Otherwise, you're not going to care about his crappy childhood or the women he abuses.
I have an opportunity to meet Junot Diaz this Thursday at my school. I will not attend because I'm sure that, although he is apparently an English professor, I could convince even him that his book requires some serious rewriting.
As a middle-class white female, I don't connect with the author or with his opinions, which makes the book hard to digest. Unless you are a poor Dominican male with an absentee father, it is difficult to understand the point Diaz is attempting to make, if he is attempting it at all. I would suggest that this book be removed from college curriculums. Please, stop making us read this garbage.
Book Description
Merengue—the quintessential Dominican dance music—has a long and complex history, both on the island and in the large immigrant community in New York City. In this ambitious work, Paul Austerlitz unravels the African and Iberian roots of merengue and traces its growth under dictator Rafael Trujillo and its renewed popularity as an international music.
Using extensive interviews as well as written commentaries, Austerlitz examines the historical and contemporary contexts in which merengue is performed and danced, its symbolic significance, its social functions, and its musical and choreographic structures. He tells the tale of merengue's political functions, and of its class and racial significance. He not only explores the various ethnic origins of this Ibero-African art form, but points out how some Dominicans have tried to deny its African roots.
In today's global society, mass culture often marks ethnic identity. Found throughout Dominican society, both at home and abroad, merengue is the prime marker of Dominican identity. By telling the story of this dance music, the author captures the meaning of mass and folk expression in contemporary ethnicity as well as the relationship between regional, national, and migrant culture and between rural/regional and urban/mass culture. Austerlitz also traces the impact of migration and global culture on the native music, itself already a vibrant intermixture of home-grown merengue forms.
From rural folk idiom to transnational mass music, merengue has had a long and colorful career. Its well-deserved popularity will make this book a must read for anyone interested in contemporary music; its complex history will make the book equally indispensable to anyone interested in cultural studies.
Customer Reviews:
AY COMPAY! DON'T MISS THIS!.......2001-04-26
Up in Manhattan's Morningside Heights and its Dominican analogs all over the US, salsa is edged out by the magnificently manic beat of the merengue, whether stirred into Dominican rap and house (the most original as well as the least known versions of the genre) or in the tear-em-down accordion of Fefita La Grande. Austerlitz has all this and a lot more, all the way from the luckless Toma' back in the 1840s (read the book!)Austerlitz covers merengue from rural to hi-society in all its fierce joviality. Read this book and you'll know there's one good thing Trujillo did for the Dominican Republic!
John Storm Roberts
An Important Addition to the Library of Any Merengue Fan.......2000-04-25
If you are looking for a quick yet thorough coverage of this topic then this is the book for you. It is a relatively short book, coming in at 167 pages (not including bibliography but including notes section), yet it covers the whole spectrum of the national music of the Dominican Republic.
Mr Austerlitz covers the beginnings of this music all the way through to its current state. It also spends time on Merengue's development during the Trujillo era (a particularly interesting topic to anyone who studies the Dominican Republic).
Mr Austerlitz also does a good job of addressing the sociological issues that arise from music and manages to blend well the merengue of the campo with that of the salon.
A good read and it even comes with a CD with some very good campo (country) merengue. If you are looking for merengue at its roots then this CD should please you.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1.Introduction
PART 1: THE HISTORY OF MERENGUE 1854-1961. 2. Nineteenth-Century Caribbean Merengue. 3. Merengue Cibaeno, Cultural Nationalism, and Resistance. 4. Music and the State: Merengue during the Era of Trujillo, 1930-1961.
PART 2: The Contemporary Era, 1961-1995. 5. Merengue in the Transnational Community. 6. Innovation and Social Issues in Pop Merengue. 7. Merengue on the Global Stage. 8. Enduring Localism. 9. Conclusion
Let me know if you found this useful.
Great Overview of Merengue.......1999-04-08
Enjoyed the insight into the history of Merengue and its cultural context. This book has a place on my bookshelf along with "The Latin Tinge" and "The Brazilian Sound."
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