This Is How You Lose Her

Photo Courtesy of Oprah.com

 

I absolutely love Junot Diaz's prose. This is How You Lose Her is the Dominican author's third book. It is also the third time I've read his work and haven't been able to put it down (check out his books Drown  and The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao ).

 

 

This book is a collection of short stories that center around a young Dominican man, and his complicated romantic or familial relationships with the women in his life. As someone with Caribbean heritage, who grew up in a working class family in the New York tri state area (Diaz grew up in New Jersey), I found myself identifying with and laughing at some of his protagonists' thoughts:

 

"While Rafa's hair was straight and glided through a comb like a Caribbean grandparent's dream, my hair still had enough of the African to condemn me to endless combings and out-of-this-world haircuts. My mother cut our hair every month, but this time when she put me in the chair my father told her not to bother." (pg  126)

and

"Only a b&%$h of color comes to Harvard to get pregnant. White women don't do that. Asian women don't do that. Only f&%$king Black and Latina women. Why go to all the trouble to get into Harvard just to get knocked up? You could have stayed on the block and done that s&%t." (pg 198)

But I don't want to suggest that the only people who "get" Diaz are those who are from an island and grew up in the inner city.  I truly think his work is relatable on a universal level, as it is down to earth, honest, and always entertaining. Presently, Diaz is a creative writing professor at MIT. I can only imagine that he's one of those "cool" professors with the fun class.

Are you a Junot Diaz fan? What do you think about his books?

Signing Off,
Nic



Went to Sleep Snoop Dogg, Woke Up Snoop Lion

Photo courtesy of martlet.ca

 

 

So have you heard of Snoop Dogg's Lion's new documentary, released earlier this year? Well, it's on Netflix now, and being both a fan of Snoop's, and a descendant of Jamaica who respects Rastafarianism (I actually reviewed a book about the religion here,) I had to watch it. (I also just came back from a trip to Jamaica, where I went on Bob Marley tour, led by a group of Rastas). While it's true that Snoop has nothing to prove to me or you, I must say, I'm not convinced.



According to the film, his reasons for converting to Rasta (actually, I'm not even clear if he's actually converted), seems to have stemmed from experiencing the violent deaths of some of his closest friends, and realizing that some of his music perpetuated this kind of violence. He says he decided to make music that focused on love and the struggle, which was akin to the type of music Bob Marley created back in the day. Oh, and let's not forget that he's a heavy weed smoker, which is something Rastas engage in, as well, so I guess that equals a perfect fit? Not quite.

Snoop's doc is so heavily focused on the deaths he's seen, and the weed he likes to smoke, that I was left with a bunch of questions at the end. What else about Rastafarianism attracted him? Has he embraced the ital (all natural) food that Rastas eat? Has his family converted too? If not, how do they feel about it? All we really hear from his family in the film is that his daughter, Cori, feels like her dad is a happier person. Most importantly, and most integral to the religion, has he embraced Jah Rastafari as his god? AND, how was he able to smuggle all of that weed from LA to Kingston on the plane? LOL

Not to tear the doc apart, but I can't say it was enlightening, or particularly thorough with respect to the religion. Weed smokers might love it. On the plus side, it does sound like he's come up with some great reggae-inspired music through this "reincarnation" process.

 

 

Photo Courtesy of Keepittrill.com

 

Are any of you all Snoop Dogg Lion (I keep forgetting) fans? What do you think about his reincarnation? Have you been able to catch this doc on Netflix?

 

Signing Off,

Nic

The Conquering Lion of Judah

Hey friends! I’ve been so busy with grad school, and PhD program applications that I haven’t had much time to update this site (and I certainly haven’t had too many opportunities for casual reading), but I decided to make some time to write today. For the past few months, anytime I’ve gotten a few minutes, I’ve been reading a book called Rastafari: Roots and Ideology. 

 

                                                                       Photo Credit: Amazon.com

In general, I’m interested in religious history (at 5a this morning, I watched a documentary on Netflix about the origins of America’s religious landscape through my smartphone before getting ready for church). Although I’m a Christian, I respect and love to learn about all religions. And maybe I’m biased given my Jamaican heritage, but when I came across Rastafari in the bookstore, I knew I had to buy it.

Photo Credit: Religionfacts.com

The book starts off exactly where it should: during the era of slavery in Jamaica, as the author aims to tie in some of the traditions of these Africans to the Rastafarian religion we recognize today. As he progresses through time, Chevannes discusses the changes, divisions, and spiritual leaders who shaped the faith. His first and second-hand accounts of the Rastas are both interesting and eye-opening, as I never knew so many details about Rastafarianism (such as the difference between The Bobos and The Dreadlocks, two factions within the religion).  I have, however, always respected the Rastas based on what I did know about their religion, particularly their strong anti-colonial, pro-African positions. They were rebels in a country where their captors tried to make them to assimilate to the British beliefs and standards of beauty. You have to respect a people who decide to love themselves and their heritage even when the historical psychological trauma of slavery and colonization has successfully forced many to do otherwise (we can still see the impact of this psychic trauma today, throughout the Caribbean and in the Americas).

This work is essentially the result of field research that the author, Barry Chevannes, conducted in Jamaica in the 1970s for his doctoral dissertation at Columbia University.  The Kingston-born scholar taught Sociology at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica until his death in 2010 at the age of 70.

Photo Credit: Wikipedia.orgWhile the nearly 300 pages of research do not read like a novel (and I wouldn’t expect it to, since it’s academic research), the author’s attention to detail makes this book arguably one of the best sources of information on Rastafarianism. Are you interested in religious history like me? I bought this book at Barnes & Noble and it was the only copy on the shelf.  Have you seen this book at your local bookstores? Libraries?  Check it out and let me know where you find it. 

 

Your friend,

Nic