The more I read books, the more critical
I get and the more selective I am about what I truly like or enjoy. The truth
is that there are as many books out there as there are people to read them. And
they are just as different and unique as the people who enjoy them. I will not
like all of them. And we will not have the same taste. But I always thought I
would be able to appreciate them for what they are and what they represent for
those who will discover reading through them.
But this book positively grated on my
nerves for being many things that I was taught weren’t good literature. And it
bothered me more that the author has received national acclaim for her writing
and teaching and she continues to teach her students how to write. And this
book won the Coretta Scott King Award. Disconnect between education and
reality.
Well, we were always taught in
elementary school that you never ever start a sentence with “and” or “but”.
(See previous paragraphs.) Then in junior high and high school we were taught
how we could get away with it and write more interesting sentences. And then
college teaching assistants told us to throw everything we had ever learned out
the window. Now I see that you can be published and rewarded for the very
writing we were punished for in school. Ugh!
Our main character is Gerald. When the
book begins, he is three years old. His mother, Monique, has an unusual way of
teaching her son life lessons. When he has an accident in his pants, she makes
him sit in it all day. When he plays with fire, she burns him enough to leave a
scar. And he learns very early that he cannot depend upon her because she regularly
leaves him home alone, hours at a time, to find, buy and do drugs.
Despite the lesson in “don’t play with
fire,” the fiery dancer within the lighter is still too intriguing to leave
alone and Gerald inadvertently sets their apartment on fire. Gerald lives.
Monique goes to jail. Aunt Queen gets custody. The good win and the bad are
punished.
When Gerald turns nine, his mother
returns to claim him. She comes with a new husband, Jordan, and Gerald’s half-sister,
Angel. Aunt Queen vows to fight to keep Gerald and fight for Angel, but doesn’t
live long enough to keep her promise.
Gerald knows that Jordan is abusive, but
by the time Gerald enters high school he has become aware that his step-dad has
also been molesting Angel. A friend’s father helps Gerald to put Jordan behind
bars. Monique is angry. Angel is confused but safe. Gerald can enjoy being a
teenager. The good win and the bad are punished.
Jordan returns rehabilitated. Monique is
happy. Angel is a basket case. Gerald is afraid to put his guard down, but he
cannot be around all the time. Gerald will make a final stand for the family
that he was given. He will endure the fire one more time.
The book reads more like a case study in
child abuse and less like fiction. I can see it on the shelves in a counselor’s
office more than I can on a library’s shelves. This is problem number one I see
in conflict with the interpretation of literature as I was taught. Problem
number two is the point of view. Mainly we are seeing the world through Gerald’s
eyes, but on occasion we are given a glimpse through the eyes of various characters.
It is jarring and confusing and the reader knows too much. Gerald’s position is
powerful enough without added explanation.
Now that I have that out of the way,
this novel was a quick and engaging read. It was eye-opening as contemporary
realistic fiction. It is written for the older reluctant reader and I am sure
that it would resonate with teenagers who experienced similar situations. And
frightening for those of us who were sheltered.
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