The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz is pure genius storytelling at its core. This was a Book Club choice that had me a little nervous but in the end had me tightly strapped in for the ride.
As the title suggests, there is brevity to Oscar Wao’s life. Going into the read knowing this fact makes it even harder to accept as you have little hope that he will survive all that is thrown at him in his early years. You root for him the entire length of the book but know deep in your heart it will not end well.
The imagery, foreshadowing and character development is on point — rich with emotion and passion. You will fall in love with Oscar knowing all the while he is so very different from you, but so very similar at the same time. You will suffer the torture and experience the pain he feels.
But in the end, you accept what has happened despite the heartbreak and sadness that comes with it. I am better man having read about Oscar than I was before.