Customer Reviews

Slapboxing with Jesus

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Books written about the street aren't necessarily good. Some people believe that if you show enough realism and grittiness, in essence, show the street as it truly is, art will result. They're wrong, as is evidenced by this generic collection of stories about young boys sexing it up, fighting, pimping, killing, and basically living like animals. There's something really creepy and unsettling about the subject matter that Lavalle has chosen.

I must tell you from the outset that I do not believe in collections of stories that have thin connections between each other, mostly when it's through the characters. To me, they are written by writers without enough vision to craft a novel. They write a lot of stories and then they concoct that they go together. The same goes for this book.

All of the stories have to do with young men or boy-children. The first couple of stories work the best because the novelty of the subject and setting hasn't got old yet. In "ancient history" two friends vie to become successful. "pops" concerns the first meeting between a boy and his cop father, with all the ensuing awkwardness. "kids on colden street" shows a boy who gets a kid sister and becomes her protector. In the end he realizes he can protect her from nothing.

While I thought the stories in this book were adequate, there was something too craftsmanlike about them. None of the characters were really established enough to care about them through the whole volume. While it had spats of good writing, it was mostly just average.

These are a collection of stories of guys growing up on the street of New York. The stories deal with relationship, missing fathers, prostitution, teasing, and other things teens go through. The stories make you think. I throught some of the stories ended kinda of strange, but they were still good.

These are a collection of stories of guys growing up on the street of New York. The stories deal with relationship, missing fathers, prostitution, teasing, and other things teens go through. The stories make you think. I throught some of the stories ended kinda of strange, but they were still good.

These are a collection of stories of guys growing up on the street of New York. The stories deal with relationship, missing fathers, prostitution, teasing, and other things teens go through. The stories make you think. I throught some of the stories ended kinda of strange, but they were still good.

This was an extremely well-written collection of interconnected vignettes. The author's language and style really jump in your face and nearly knock you out (yeah, bad pun, I know). I don't know if it was intentional, but each story made me want just a little bit more. I don't need happy endings as a reader, as a matter of fact I don't always need an ending, but I got lost between a few of the stories. Would really love to see how Lavalle use his abilities to make words move in a complete novel -- he has great talent and I'm guessing I'll read much of his work in the future.

Victor D. Lavalle's work rushes over you with incredible twists of wording. He gives us a city life not soaked in streetslang and the typical gutterplace we'd expect, but instead, turns us on to a sensible Brooklyn, a place that does resonate with us, even if we're from the burbs. Extraordinary.

SLAPBOXING is a collection of inter-related, but largely independent, short stories centered around life in NYC, spanning the last three decades. The scope of the works presage greater thing to come from Victor Lavalle, particularly once you get by the hype and ignore the comparisons.

I had to reread the stories - it's reasonably quick read - because my response after the first completion was "so what?" I realized I had approached this often dark and somber assortment with expectations of discovering some modern era consolidation of Wright/Ellison/Hughes. Victor Lavalle is none of them, nor should he be. But this collection provides every indication he will carve out a separate and distinct niche.

Overall, the stories are good, in fact, very good. "Ancient History" with its' creative utilization of blended narration was my personal favorite. The themes are not necessarily new or unique, especially if you are cognizant the real fictional aspect is in the assignation of characters rather than the events described which are repeated day after day, decade after decade.

I found the appeal to be in the construction and composition rather than what he had to say. Every writer need not be cathartic and there is little to uplift your spirit in this collection. It is the stark yet incisve style that is most compelling.

No matter how well-read you might be, you've never seen anything like these stories by Victor D. Lavalle. Completely original, with understated (yet always evident) intelligence. How can someone so talented be so humble? Victor was once a classmate of mine, and I'm proud to see what he's accomplished with these stories. A little jealous maybe, but mostly damned proud. Looking forward to the first novel.

LaValle's prose is poetic--pain that sings, danger that seduces, humiliation that leaves an oddly sweet taste in the mouth of the humiliated. There are no barriers he does not transcend, in form and content. I wish I could say I couldn't put this book down, but I had to, since every story hits with such force. The recovery time was worth it, though; this is the best book I've read in years.

this book is entirely what i expected from vic the merciless. I had to find the time to devote to this book because i wanted to soak it all in and re-read after i and re-read it.... GOD, a big smile came across my face, you "shinin like shalamar in '81, sun". thats my word. keep it movin, baby. for all those who think that way: lucid, creative, energetic and fatal from a semple man.