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Comments (57)

What did you think about this title?
1 to 25 of 57 items
Mar 03, 2022s_holez rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is a must read for people who want to learn about other cultures; this one, about the Dominican Republic. The background cries with the Trujillo regime and one learns a little bit of how horrible life was for Dominicans, even for…
Feb 20, 2022halcon122 rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
First off, I'm an older first generation American from a bicultural, bilingual family. Grew up in New York/New Jersey with a lot of Puerto Ricans and Dominicans. I thought this was a fabulous cultural tale combined with some outrageous…
Jan 01, 2022Anita_Dickey rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
I read this book for the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge. I used the prompt read a book with a second person narrative. It is also on Listopia's 300 books everyone should read once list. It is terrible. Full of vulgar slang and lousy plot…
Dec 29, 2021Anita_Dickey rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
I read this book for the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge. I used the prompt read a book with a second person narrative. It is also on Listopia's 300 books everyone should read once list. It is terrible. Full of vulgar slang and lousy plot…
yellow_mustard
Apr 10, 2021yellow_mustard rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
Vulgar. English and Spanish curse words on every page. Too much sexism for my liking.
Feb 03, 2021rachgrosser rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Junot Diaz has a clever way of teaching us so much in just one novel. He packs the pages with footnotes upon footnotes that will open your eyes to the real Dominican Republic: the culture, the history, the delight. The story of Oscar, his…
Nov 15, 2020rclane rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Some chunks of this novel were supremely funny. How can one dude be so hip?
Nov 08, 2020craveginger rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
February 2020 (7.5/10)
Jul 15, 2020ATEN_DNAR rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
I had to read this book for an English class in college. Upon being first introduced to this title, my professor explained that science-fiction/fantasy fans may like this book because it talks about things in Lord of the Rings, Stars Wars,…
Jun 07, 2020EljayJohnson rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
Bold and breathless. The middle third paled for me, but it finished well.
May 25, 2020
waitlisted
Mar 26, 2020
Díaz is a problematic fav of mine. A lot like Murakami, I can never tell if he's being deconstructive or if he actually is a little bit sexist. Maybe a little of both. That aside, his prose is insane. Even if this book didn't have a…
Jun 19, 2019l21195001514010 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Masterfully crafted, this story takes us into the folds of a complicated family. We finish the novel with a greater understanding of each family member as well as what it was like for some of them to straddle two cultures at once. I love…
Jul 27, 2018RogerDeBlanck rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Staying rooted in his Dominican heritage, Junot Diaz's first novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, traces the source of an ancient Caribbean curse called the "fuku." The title character and his family are its final victims. Oscar is…
Mar 24, 2018carsonstuart rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Excellent novel with some Dominican Republic history thrown in for extra interest
Nov 25, 2017Manateestarz rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
It is possible to straddle two subcultures. It is also possible to love a fast paced,furiously written book with pages and pages of allusions. I just loved this book even though I am not part of the geek fandom that is so important in…
Sarah1984
Aug 03, 2017Sarah1984 rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
This isn't working for me. The footnotes are bothering me particularly. I barely know anything about the Dominican Republic and I feel like Diaz expects me to be well versed in their history and their notable historical figures, as well as…
Jun 07, 2017elizali rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Junot Diaz is a phenomenal writer. He will make you feel something. This book is a perfect summer read and will stick with me for years to come.
Jan 29, 2017mogie rated this title 1.5 out of 5 stars
I chose this book for book club as it seemed promising. I must apologize to my fellow members. This book received rave reviews. I struggled to get through it and it made me feel stupid. I didn't understand what was going on or where it was…
Nov 16, 2016ArapahoeLesley rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Junot Diaz is hilarious, insightful, shockingly crass and real as can be. I am a fan.
Sep 09, 2016ArapahoeBethW rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This Pulitzer Prize winning novel is a refreshing and spicy piece of work. Oscar is not your typical hero, but the unsung hero of all ghetto nerds. His story is complex and wound tight, told through a multigenerational family saga,…
Sep 08, 2016swheeler89 rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
I wanted to like this - but ending up calling it quits more than half way in. Slow and hard to follow.
Aug 08, 2016ArapahoeAlison rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This book was unlike anything I read in a long time. Junot Diaz takes the reader on a wild read through New Jersey and the Dominican Republic following the de Leon family. Not only do we have the story of an immigrant family, but also of a…
Jun 03, 2016TSCPL_ChrisB rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Haunting. Affecting. There's also this wonderful story about love. I enjoyed the casual tone of the book, the importance of one kiss, and the relationships between Oscar and his family. At its core, ...Oscar Wao is a story that is hard to…
Apr 12, 2016OBSTUKAL rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
A painfully slow start. It's about a teenage boy, so it sounds like a teenage boy is telling the story. I am very surprised at the awards it has won.