Oscar Wao has been on my list for a while, but I didn't really know what it was about. It's an interesting book - Oscar is an aspect of it, but not the entire story. Born in the Dominican Republic and raised in Jersey, Oscar is a fat nerd that just wants a girl, but spends his time writing, reading, and watching sci fi, graphic novels, and anime. We are also introduced to his beautiful older sister, his cancer-stricken mom, and his grandmother, who still lives in DR. Each character has their own story, each more fascinating than the last. What I love about this book is how your perception of the characters change, depending on whose story it is. These characters have survived dictatorships, heartbreak, beatings, and worse, perhaps all because of a curse, fuku.
Oscar Wao is not the quickest read; Diaz includes lots of historical footnotes and there's a decent amount of Spanish in it, which slowed me down a little (kept translating in my head). But I found the characters and the world they inhabited fascinating.
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