Drown
by Junot Diaz

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Book Reviews of Drown

Book Review: My Review on Drown
Summary: 5 Stars

In 'Yasrael' the story is told by a little boy, Yunior, living with his family in a barrio in Santo Domingo. Him and his brother go out in search for Ysrael, the boy ywith the demented face who is talked about and ridiculed by everyone in town.

In 'No Face', the tables turn and the story comes from Ysrael's point of view. We hear his dreams of going to America, where there are doctors who can fix his face. We see his daily struggles and how it feels to be the town freak.

In 'Aurora', a small-time drug dealer in New Jersey tells the story. We see how he works his "business" around the barrio. We see how he struggles with his hopeless, crack-head girlfriend, who just can't seem to get her life together and keeps bringing him down with her.

In 'Aguantado', we re-visit Yunior at a different time in his life. In this story he explains to us the long wait in Santo Domingo for his father, who has gone to the United States to make a better living for them. While his father is looking for work in the States, him and his brother and mother struggle from day to day to get enough food on the table.

In 'Drown', we are given the story of a young man living with his mother in a barrio in New Jersey. His story is a refelction of growing up as a mischievous boy, and never growing out of his boyhood. Though all his childhood friends have grown-up and moved away, he can't seem to do the same.

In 'Edison, New Jersey', we are given the story of a young Dominican guy making a living as a pool table deliveryman. He talks about the different wealthy costomers he delivers to in the suburbs. He talks about his x-girlfriend and her new "gringo" boyfriend. We see a typical day in his life.

In 'How to Date a Brown Girl, Black Girl, White Girl, of Halfie', we are given the standpoint of a young Dominican guy living in a New Jersey barrio. He advises about all the different types of girls he has dated and how they react differently to the way he lives, and how he acts differently around them.

In all these stories there is a pattern. Everyone is searching for something to fulfill his or her lives. They feel empty with their current situation, but they do not know how or what to fill that void with. So they continue to search, dissatisfied with everything.

I would recommend this book to everyone because it gives a good in sight to the lives of many different people, yet in lots of ways they are all the same. Their stories are so personal that it is hard not to sympathize with each of the characters. They all seem to have some sort of connection because they are all looking for something more in their lives, but they seem to be looking in all the wrong places. This book is very interesting, humorous,and touching, and it painted a good picture of the barrio lifestyles of Santo Domingo and the barrios in New Jersey.

Summary of Drown

Short Stories Books

• Books > Subjects > Literature & Fiction
• United States
• Literary