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Hombrecito
A novel by a brilliant new voice, Hombrecito is a queer coming-of-age story about a young immigrant’s complex relationships with his mother and his motherland
In this groundbreaking novel, Santiago Jose Sanchez plunges us into the heart of one boy’s life. His mother takes him and his brother from Colombia to America, leaving their absent father behind but essentially disappearing herself once they get to Miami.
In America, his mother works as a waitress when she was once a doctor. The boy embraces his queer identity as wholeheartedly as he embraces his new home, but not without a sense of loss. As he grows, his relationship with his mother becomes fraught, tangled, a love so intense that it borders on vivid pain but is also the axis around which his every decision revolves. She may have once forgotten him, disappeared, but she is always on his mind.
He moves to New York, ducking in and out of bed with different men as he seeks out something, someone, to make him whole again. When his mother invites him to visit family in Colombia with her, he returns to the country as a young man, trying to find peace with his father, with his homeland, with who he’s become since he left, and with who his mother finally we come to know her and her secrets, her complex ambivalence and fierce love.
Hombrecito— “little man”—is a moving portrait of a young person between cultures, between different ideas of himself. From an extraordinary new talent, this is a story told with startling beauty and intensity, a story for anyone searching for home, searching for a way to love.
In this groundbreaking novel, Santiago Jose Sanchez plunges us into the heart of one boy’s life. His mother takes him and his brother from Colombia to America, leaving their absent father behind but essentially disappearing herself once they get to Miami.
In America, his mother works as a waitress when she was once a doctor. The boy embraces his queer identity as wholeheartedly as he embraces his new home, but not without a sense of loss. As he grows, his relationship with his mother becomes fraught, tangled, a love so intense that it borders on vivid pain but is also the axis around which his every decision revolves. She may have once forgotten him, disappeared, but she is always on his mind.
He moves to New York, ducking in and out of bed with different men as he seeks out something, someone, to make him whole again. When his mother invites him to visit family in Colombia with her, he returns to the country as a young man, trying to find peace with his father, with his homeland, with who he’s become since he left, and with who his mother finally we come to know her and her secrets, her complex ambivalence and fierce love.
Hombrecito— “little man”—is a moving portrait of a young person between cultures, between different ideas of himself. From an extraordinary new talent, this is a story told with startling beauty and intensity, a story for anyone searching for home, searching for a way to love.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published June 25, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
September 12, 2024
I have been so excited for this. I read SJS's story "In This Life or Another" a few years ago in McSweeney's and knew I was onto something special. That story is the opening chapter here, a wonderfully queer coming of age novel. As Publishers Weekly says, this is a triumph.
September 7, 2024
I appreciated the themes of self-discovery, searching for home, and messy family relationships, though I didn’t love the writing in this one. The prose was just too purple and meandering for me. Like it was trying to deliver emotion but in that forced delivery fell flat. I also get that queer men and queer men of color specifically are allowed to have messy relationships with men, though there’s a particular contrived way (in my opinion) that that’s written about in contemporary fiction that comes across as unoriginal and boring angsty, which I felt reading this book. Again, some powerful sentiments related to how our early relationships affect our later ones, though I unfortunately didn’t love this novel.
May 11, 2024
As far as queer coming of age stories go, Hombrecito is a wonder and an extraordinary reading experience that I cherished deeply. Anyone who has struggled to understand their place in the world and come to terms with the concept of family and home will see a part of themselves reflected in this book. How do we negotiate between how the people we love see us and the person we truly are? How do our relationships with our families and the things that happen to us in our early lives impact the contours and ultimately the trajectory of our lives?
In the novel, Santiago Jose Sanchez takes us on a journey through various seasons of the protagonist of the same name's life in at times profound and surreal detail. The prose here was remarkable and I was absolutely in awe of Sanchez's craft and style. In each section, we are shown a collection of images and scenes from childhood to adulthood: Santiago's beginnings with their mother and brother in Columbia, their big move to Miami when Santiago was a child, and subsequent moves through time in being a teenager seeking love, to adulthood in New York City, and a visit back to Columbia with their mother.
Each indelible moment in the narrative, both big and seemingly small, builds upon the next to shape and mold Santiago's life. Central to the novel was Santiago's growth as a queer child into a queer adult and how this pulls them in directions through time and distance that are different from Santiago's family - something I felt was all too relatable. Here, I was reminded of how the events of our lives are impressed upon us in all of their sharp and at times frightening intensity. It's these events that ultimately effect the ways in which we seek family, belonging, and a sense of home in life and how our vision of these concepts can be simultaneously blurry and presented to us in wide-eyed clarity. Overall, the novel was brilliant and I highly recommend if you're looking for a moving and complex coming of age story! This will definitely be for readers of Ocean Vuong and Justin Torres.
In the novel, Santiago Jose Sanchez takes us on a journey through various seasons of the protagonist of the same name's life in at times profound and surreal detail. The prose here was remarkable and I was absolutely in awe of Sanchez's craft and style. In each section, we are shown a collection of images and scenes from childhood to adulthood: Santiago's beginnings with their mother and brother in Columbia, their big move to Miami when Santiago was a child, and subsequent moves through time in being a teenager seeking love, to adulthood in New York City, and a visit back to Columbia with their mother.
Each indelible moment in the narrative, both big and seemingly small, builds upon the next to shape and mold Santiago's life. Central to the novel was Santiago's growth as a queer child into a queer adult and how this pulls them in directions through time and distance that are different from Santiago's family - something I felt was all too relatable. Here, I was reminded of how the events of our lives are impressed upon us in all of their sharp and at times frightening intensity. It's these events that ultimately effect the ways in which we seek family, belonging, and a sense of home in life and how our vision of these concepts can be simultaneously blurry and presented to us in wide-eyed clarity. Overall, the novel was brilliant and I highly recommend if you're looking for a moving and complex coming of age story! This will definitely be for readers of Ocean Vuong and Justin Torres.
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June 16, 2024Hombrecíto stood out immediately with some of the best prose I’ve read this year. It’s like this novel is singing the whole way through. It explores a lot of pretty complex, emotional, and tough situations (if you can’t tell from the description of the novel) and, while I sensed just a few spots left unfilled, this novel is still beautiful, and I anticipate is one of 2024’s must-read debuts.
July 11, 2024
I want to begin by saying that I am so lucky to be alive while writers like Santiago are publishing stories. I am so thankful and grateful and honored to be able to read prose like this.
Hombrecito is a masterpiece. In the truest definition of the word. Billed as a queer coming of age story, understand that it is that and more. It is the story of a young Colombian immigrant discovering themselves and their queerness while grappling with their relationship to their parents and their homeland. It ebbs through different points of view as Santiago grows up, almost showing us through grammatical form their journey of self discovery and development. I loved every second of it.
Though I cannot ever fully understand the immigrant experience, so much of the queer experience in Hombrecito was familiar to me. Santiago’s adolescence and early adulthood, their navigation through circles that weren’t accepting of their sexuality, I can relate to so much of it. I wanted to hold their hand and hug them. I read late into the night simply to know if they’d be okay.
And the writing! The sentences! Not a word was wasted. I cried so much in the last third. I am repeating myself at this point, but truly, it’s a masterpiece, y’all.
Hombrecito is a masterpiece. In the truest definition of the word. Billed as a queer coming of age story, understand that it is that and more. It is the story of a young Colombian immigrant discovering themselves and their queerness while grappling with their relationship to their parents and their homeland. It ebbs through different points of view as Santiago grows up, almost showing us through grammatical form their journey of self discovery and development. I loved every second of it.
Though I cannot ever fully understand the immigrant experience, so much of the queer experience in Hombrecito was familiar to me. Santiago’s adolescence and early adulthood, their navigation through circles that weren’t accepting of their sexuality, I can relate to so much of it. I wanted to hold their hand and hug them. I read late into the night simply to know if they’d be okay.
And the writing! The sentences! Not a word was wasted. I cried so much in the last third. I am repeating myself at this point, but truly, it’s a masterpiece, y’all.
June 17, 2024
"i almost screamed. i felt visible, as if i suddenly gave off light. i never could tell when i was and wasn't seen."
the author did something so incredible with this story, i don't think i'll ever stop thinking about it. i feel like a veil of melancholy was slowly taken off me and now i can just b r e a t h e. reading this felt like when you stay up until 2am during a sleepover with a friend to tell each other the things you're too scared to say when the sun's out. the writing is so well done it gave me goosebumps from how it felt like i was looking directly into a mirror while experiencing santiago's journey from boyhood into manhood. and the end? oh my god. all i can say is that 'hombrecito' is a gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous novel.
thank you to riverhead books for sending me an advanced copy to review!
the author did something so incredible with this story, i don't think i'll ever stop thinking about it. i feel like a veil of melancholy was slowly taken off me and now i can just b r e a t h e. reading this felt like when you stay up until 2am during a sleepover with a friend to tell each other the things you're too scared to say when the sun's out. the writing is so well done it gave me goosebumps from how it felt like i was looking directly into a mirror while experiencing santiago's journey from boyhood into manhood. and the end? oh my god. all i can say is that 'hombrecito' is a gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous novel.
thank you to riverhead books for sending me an advanced copy to review!
June 29, 2024
This book just flows so well, blending one part of the main characters life into another, making you feel as though you are watching front and center. I love any queer POC read, and this one gave me insight onto what it’s like to be a queer Columbian during some trying times.
August 20, 2024
An easy five stars! I think my favorite part was how Sanchez writes about place. Each of the places that Santiago travels through — Ibague, Miami, New York — becomes a central character in the character’s life story. In just a few short vignettes, Sanchez captures the essence of each of these places and how they shape Santiago’s growth. I also love the way that Sanchez writes about sex and sensuality. The ending was so unexpected and perfect. LOVE!
August 21, 2024
Feeling isolated and apart, from family, home, yourself, but craving connection and belonging, this coming of age story grapples with finding yourself while also finding your place in the relationships and world around you, and how to grow both independently and within the bonds that you've forged.
Quietly beautiful, this was extraordinary.
Quietly beautiful, this was extraordinary.
July 2, 2024
This was a beautiful debut, full of gorgeous prose and a lovely story about Santiago, who moves from Colombia to the US in the 90s. We watch Santiago grow from a child to an adult, and the complex situations he finds himself in. The relationship with his mother made me sad, especially when he was young. His brother :(. His dad :(. Leo :(.
I have a lot of feelings about this book okay!! It wasn’t all sad. There was some real beauty in this story, particularly as Santiago moves into adulthood and changes.
I liked the ending a lot, it was hopeful. I loved how it switched POV and from first to third person. It was so interesting and a really impactful way to end to end the book.
Definitely recommend this one!
I have a lot of feelings about this book okay!! It wasn’t all sad. There was some real beauty in this story, particularly as Santiago moves into adulthood and changes.
I liked the ending a lot, it was hopeful. I loved how it switched POV and from first to third person. It was so interesting and a really impactful way to end to end the book.
Definitely recommend this one!
September 3, 2024
“Today she forgot she is a mother.”
The imagery in this novel was something else, I tried to keep note of my favorite similes and lost the will to keep track.
"...like the hide of an animal."
"...like a slip of silk."
"...like a bad word."
"...like a horse."
"...like a punch."
"...like two princes."
"...like cement."
"...like the mountains."
"...like a net."
"...like a jungle animal."
"...like a landscape."
"...like a world apart."
"...like a chicken without its head."
"...like waxy feathers."
The imagery in this novel was something else, I tried to keep note of my favorite similes and lost the will to keep track.
"...like the hide of an animal."
"...like a slip of silk."
"...like a bad word."
"...like a horse."
"...like a punch."
"...like two princes."
"...like cement."
"...like the mountains."
"...like a net."
"...like a jungle animal."
"...like a landscape."
"...like a world apart."
"...like a chicken without its head."
"...like waxy feathers."
July 17, 2024
so, so stunning. truly a beautiful portrayal of the experience of feeling worlds apart from the people and land you love but still craving connection more than anything, despite often not knowing how to ask for it.
July 22, 2024
seen some reviews say the end was totally out of nowhere , so wrong. the chapter focusing on his mother was exactly how it should’ve ended. i think of the picture of them as one face. how we all have secrets, and they’re probably inherited. we all feel loneliness, we deal with it differently. our mothers catch our condescending / paternalistic words, esp as they get older. understanding and companionship
August 15, 2024
Ohhhhhhhh it’s all in the details of these pages. I partnered this ebook with the audiobook. I will follow-up with more detailed review.
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December 30, 2021"about a young gay man—an immigrant from Colombia to Miami—grappling with his turbulent sexual coming of age, and his fierce, complicated relationship with his mother and their homeland"
August 5, 2024
3.5*
Hombrecito is defined by a luminous sort of prose. Especially in the earliest half sections, Sanchez' ability to take ordinary scenery and make them feel new and important was one of the driving forces that kept me reading. However, the approach to the novel's structure and genre conventions, I felt, made me uncertain how to 'read' the novel in a critical sense.
Hombrecito reads like a memoir, going so far as the protagonist and author sharing a name, place of origin, and other elements, but LC subject headers and a disclaimer in the front matter state that this is a work of fiction. I can understand this being an artistic choice, but what purpose does it serve for the reader? In that regard, I found Hombrecito lacking--while a bildungsroman often, if not chiefly, is about a protagonist not knowing who they are (and then finding out), this falls apart if the book itself does not know what it aims to be. Most of the questions get answered offstage, so to speak--context then given later with little fanfare, undercutting the unspoken contract of genre convention without doing enough to make it feel on purpose.
Even now I tread lightly as I don't know how to treat the subjects contained within, as the line between fiction and reality appears hair-thin, and I don't wish to criticize someone's lived experiences when I should be looking at the craft of a memoir. I think for a book to stir that much turmoil--and, judging by other reviews, I am not the only one--for the reader just by genre conventions alone, without it feeling like a play between genres, that's a sign of something on the back-end needing edited, or perhaps some sort of clarification in the front or back matter.
The places where the book truly shined and arrested my attention were not the reasons I picked up the book. I'd been looking for more queer books, especially enthused to read something by trans/gnc/etc. authors after a while without them on my docket, but these elements in practice did not hold my attention, nor did the coming-of-age aspects, which felt incomplete. I was curious to know, treating this as a memoir and knowing inevitably that a question of gender would come up--only to find that this was summed up in a matter of a few lines, no elaboration or consequence. Narration erred on an interiority that after a while, felt grating in its lack of abject scene or focus--a meandering of vignettes sparse in dialogue and heavy on reflection, substance often listless and pining without reprieve. Instead I found the portrait of the family--of Luz, especially, to be what held my interest.
After completing literature programs, editing with a magazine here and there, and now working as a librarian (adult, then teen) I feel there is a great divide between what the layperson may find enjoyable and what other writers may want to dissect. I don't often write reviews (because who has the time), and I often read books for business rather than pleasure (e.g. the large quantity of YA and booktok titles in my read list). Looking with both sets of eyes, I find merit in both viewpoints.
I feel this is more a novel for other writers; which is not a deficit, more a statement of audience. There is a sort of insularity and self-important interiority, a brooding manner the vignettes of this story go about that I feel are common in highbrow literary circles, but are not particularly engaging for the layperson--yet they also contain a play with language that any writer would find delicious. There's good stuff here; I wonder how my experience would have been different if I'd not been worrying over if this weren't secretly a memoir or not. I'm a staunch proponent of not looking at reviews before finishing if I can avoid it, and textual evidence either which way left me wondering if there was something I'd missed.
Hombrecito is defined by a luminous sort of prose. Especially in the earliest half sections, Sanchez' ability to take ordinary scenery and make them feel new and important was one of the driving forces that kept me reading. However, the approach to the novel's structure and genre conventions, I felt, made me uncertain how to 'read' the novel in a critical sense.
Hombrecito reads like a memoir, going so far as the protagonist and author sharing a name, place of origin, and other elements, but LC subject headers and a disclaimer in the front matter state that this is a work of fiction. I can understand this being an artistic choice, but what purpose does it serve for the reader? In that regard, I found Hombrecito lacking--while a bildungsroman often, if not chiefly, is about a protagonist not knowing who they are (and then finding out), this falls apart if the book itself does not know what it aims to be. Most of the questions get answered offstage, so to speak--context then given later with little fanfare, undercutting the unspoken contract of genre convention without doing enough to make it feel on purpose.
Even now I tread lightly as I don't know how to treat the subjects contained within, as the line between fiction and reality appears hair-thin, and I don't wish to criticize someone's lived experiences when I should be looking at the craft of a memoir. I think for a book to stir that much turmoil--and, judging by other reviews, I am not the only one--for the reader just by genre conventions alone, without it feeling like a play between genres, that's a sign of something on the back-end needing edited, or perhaps some sort of clarification in the front or back matter.
The places where the book truly shined and arrested my attention were not the reasons I picked up the book. I'd been looking for more queer books, especially enthused to read something by trans/gnc/etc. authors after a while without them on my docket, but these elements in practice did not hold my attention, nor did the coming-of-age aspects, which felt incomplete. I was curious to know, treating this as a memoir and knowing inevitably that a question of gender would come up--only to find that this was summed up in a matter of a few lines, no elaboration or consequence. Narration erred on an interiority that after a while, felt grating in its lack of abject scene or focus--a meandering of vignettes sparse in dialogue and heavy on reflection, substance often listless and pining without reprieve. Instead I found the portrait of the family--of Luz, especially, to be what held my interest.
After completing literature programs, editing with a magazine here and there, and now working as a librarian (adult, then teen) I feel there is a great divide between what the layperson may find enjoyable and what other writers may want to dissect. I don't often write reviews (because who has the time), and I often read books for business rather than pleasure (e.g. the large quantity of YA and booktok titles in my read list). Looking with both sets of eyes, I find merit in both viewpoints.
I feel this is more a novel for other writers; which is not a deficit, more a statement of audience. There is a sort of insularity and self-important interiority, a brooding manner the vignettes of this story go about that I feel are common in highbrow literary circles, but are not particularly engaging for the layperson--yet they also contain a play with language that any writer would find delicious. There's good stuff here; I wonder how my experience would have been different if I'd not been worrying over if this weren't secretly a memoir or not. I'm a staunch proponent of not looking at reviews before finishing if I can avoid it, and textual evidence either which way left me wondering if there was something I'd missed.
July 7, 2024
A moving coming-of-age story that explores identity, family, and sexuality, Hombrecito by Santiago Jose Sanchez is a captivating coming-of-age tale that follows a young Colombian immigrant navigating life in the United States. The novel delves into themes of self-discovery, family relationships, and the complexities of burgeoning sexuality.
I was drawn into Santiago's world as he grapples with his identity and place in a new culture. The portrayal of his relationship with his father is particularly relatable, showcasing the nuances of parent-child bonds. The characters are well-developed and leave a lasting impression, leaving you wanting to know more about their journeys.
Sanchez's writing beautifully captures the messiness and imperfections of life, making the story all the more genuine and touching. Whether you've experienced similar situations or not, this book offers a chance to connect with the universal struggles of growing up and finding yourself.
I was drawn into Santiago's world as he grapples with his identity and place in a new culture. The portrayal of his relationship with his father is particularly relatable, showcasing the nuances of parent-child bonds. The characters are well-developed and leave a lasting impression, leaving you wanting to know more about their journeys.
Sanchez's writing beautifully captures the messiness and imperfections of life, making the story all the more genuine and touching. Whether you've experienced similar situations or not, this book offers a chance to connect with the universal struggles of growing up and finding yourself.
September 27, 2024
I found this to be a mixed reading experience.
The end was jarring because suddenly the perspective shifted to Santiago's mother, Luz, who I found to be an ambivalent parent at best. Interestingly, I realized the beginning, the chapters based in Colombia, were depressing and almost didn't get my commitment to reading the rest of this book.
And it was only after starting this title that I realized that it is National Hispanic Heritage Month. I think this is the first book set in Colombia that I've read.
From my various highlights, there are several beautiful examples of poetic, affecting writing.
Overall this book has a gritty quality...the drug use, the sex, the dysfunctional relationships. I'm not sure it made a point, especially given how the chapter before the last and the last chapter contrast. Things seemed unresolved and messy...somewhat like how the book began.
The end was jarring because suddenly the perspective shifted to Santiago's mother, Luz, who I found to be an ambivalent parent at best. Interestingly, I realized the beginning, the chapters based in Colombia, were depressing and almost didn't get my commitment to reading the rest of this book.
And it was only after starting this title that I realized that it is National Hispanic Heritage Month. I think this is the first book set in Colombia that I've read.
From my various highlights, there are several beautiful examples of poetic, affecting writing.
Overall this book has a gritty quality...the drug use, the sex, the dysfunctional relationships. I'm not sure it made a point, especially given how the chapter before the last and the last chapter contrast. Things seemed unresolved and messy...somewhat like how the book began.
August 8, 2024
" The problem with loneliness was that the longer you were lonely, the less you knew how to be anything else"
Hombrecito is a debut coming of age tale about a gay immigrant Columbian boy discovering himself and his queerness. The story mostly follows a linear timeline. The prose is beautiful and the way the author describes a scene makes you feel like you're there in the room with them.
The narration was a bit scattered for me. The author refers to characters by their name but also as ' the boy.' Characters flow in and out of the story to serve a purpose and then disappear without being mentioned again. At the end of the novel , the perspective changes to another POV which felt awkward.
Although there were clunky parts to the story, I'm still really glad I read Hombrecito. The author outlines his complicated relationship with his mother , his identity and with love.
Hombrecito is a debut coming of age tale about a gay immigrant Columbian boy discovering himself and his queerness. The story mostly follows a linear timeline. The prose is beautiful and the way the author describes a scene makes you feel like you're there in the room with them.
The narration was a bit scattered for me. The author refers to characters by their name but also as ' the boy.' Characters flow in and out of the story to serve a purpose and then disappear without being mentioned again. At the end of the novel , the perspective changes to another POV which felt awkward.
Although there were clunky parts to the story, I'm still really glad I read Hombrecito. The author outlines his complicated relationship with his mother , his identity and with love.
August 4, 2024
3.5 rounded up. At first this one started really slowly but ultimately I’m glad I stuck with it. It was a beautiful story of a flawed family relationship and a sobering depiction of how everyone copes with their reality. I did find it slightly weird that the ending was about Luz when the whole book was more about Santiago. Overall, the beginning and the ending kept me from giving a higher review but I enjoyed the intersectionality and find Santiago very relatable.
August 12, 2024
I would give it 3.5. Very well-written, especially for someone who is as young as Sanchez is. And I really liked the switch in perspective at the beginning and at the end of the book. There were characters (like Santiago's mother Luz) who I wanted to know deeper, but felt I didn't get the chance to. And what happened to Leo? The book is at its most effective and emotional I think once we are back in Colombia in the last third or so. That part of the story was most powerful for me.
July 6, 2024
Hombrecito is easily one of the best books I've read this year. The story is definitely a slow burn with a profound impact. The writing style reminded me of Ocean Vuong: dense sentences with every word beautifully moving the story forward. I recommend you take your time with this book because the journey is worth it.
August 5, 2024
Coming of age novels are usually hard for me to digest, no specific reason. But this one, focusing on a queer boy coming to terms with his sexuality and his surroundings was very well written and heartbreakingly executed. That final chapter dealing with his mother was written with so much truth and realness, it elevated the novel to unforgettable. 4/5
June 30, 2024
Beautiful
September 7, 2024
I feel bad but I didn’t love this book :/ for me it fell into the category of “memoir but call it fiction”—and because of that, it feels like there are a lot of moments that are extremely meaningful to the author that just don’t translate in retelling, because they have a wealth of context that we as readers do not. For example, the entirety of Ch. 11 is one sentence: “I made it through college without killing myself.” (159). Though I deeply empathize with the sentiment, this, to me, is weak and cheap writing that really doesn’t add anything to the story. Their writing style is lush and lyrical, but almost too decadent without enough substance—when every sentence and scene is portrayed as a deep, moving moment it ultimately becomes rote. It’s funny that they credit Larissa Pham as their best friend in the acknowledgements, because I felt almost exactly the same frustrations reading her book Pop Songs. There are some truly beautiful moments—like on pg. 128, when they describe the innocence and urgency of Santiago’s first sexual encounter with another boy, held against the as yet unknown trials and challenges that will come for the boys in time, all laid out in a stark and desperate comparison. But overall, I just couldn’t get into it in the way that I wanted to—the interiority felt too meandering and self-important. Feels like the author needed to get this book out of the way, looking forward to reading future works.
September 20, 2024
I really enjoyed this book— it wasn’t groundbreaking in the pantheon of gay coming of age stories, but it had its own unique perspective on the genre.
June 5, 2024
Won this in a Goodreads giveaway and SO glad I did! Loved it, could have read it in a day.
July 30, 2024
I loved the prose and character development, but for me this was a somewhat inconsistent read.
The author moves between different point of views throughout the novel: in Part I, referring to characters as "the boy," "the mother," and "the brother" in the third person, which I found distracting and irritating. We Do What We Do in the Dark had a similar thing, constantly referring to one of the main characters as "the woman." I would appreciate if authors discarded this tactic entirely. The narration shifted again in the last chapter from Santiago's first-person narration to his mother's. While I appreciate the attempt at playing with narration, I don't think it was completely successful. It was a bit hard to follow and I definitely enjoyed Santiago’s POV far more than the other parts. I most enjoyed the exploration of the complicated, enduring relationship between Santiago and Leo, but there was so much going on in the book that other components felt less fleshed out. Some characters were introduced in such a way that I never really grasped who they were. It feels like there might be too many threads with too many characters left unresolved.
When reading, if I’m not following a story, I begin to question what exactly makes some books impossible to put down and ring clear in my head, while others, even if I reread chapters multiple times to clarify, remain opaque and difficult. I am not sure if that is a personal fault or a quality of the writing, likely both. I oscillated between both categories while reading this book. I did deeply enjoy it, but in part I, I almost didn’t continue.
I did note that some aspects of the writing, tone, and story were reminiscent of Edinburgh, which I consider a big compliment.
The author moves between different point of views throughout the novel: in Part I, referring to characters as "the boy," "the mother," and "the brother" in the third person, which I found distracting and irritating. We Do What We Do in the Dark had a similar thing, constantly referring to one of the main characters as "the woman." I would appreciate if authors discarded this tactic entirely. The narration shifted again in the last chapter from Santiago's first-person narration to his mother's. While I appreciate the attempt at playing with narration, I don't think it was completely successful. It was a bit hard to follow and I definitely enjoyed Santiago’s POV far more than the other parts. I most enjoyed the exploration of the complicated, enduring relationship between Santiago and Leo, but there was so much going on in the book that other components felt less fleshed out. Some characters were introduced in such a way that I never really grasped who they were. It feels like there might be too many threads with too many characters left unresolved.
When reading, if I’m not following a story, I begin to question what exactly makes some books impossible to put down and ring clear in my head, while others, even if I reread chapters multiple times to clarify, remain opaque and difficult. I am not sure if that is a personal fault or a quality of the writing, likely both. I oscillated between both categories while reading this book. I did deeply enjoy it, but in part I, I almost didn’t continue.
I did note that some aspects of the writing, tone, and story were reminiscent of Edinburgh, which I consider a big compliment.
June 27, 2024
If you're looking for a great book to close off Pride month Homrecito is for you. It's a beautiful comig of age story that take place in Colombia and the United States. The story revolves around a boy named Santiago and his life growing up in Colombia with his brother, absent father and mother who oftentimes is out working and not there for the boys. They are forced to take care of each other with the issue of Santiago feeling different than the other boys. It turns out that he is falling for a male friend of his. Soon after he and his brother and mother are forced to move to the USA. Life is different there and he tries to fit in being gay. The story telling style is beautiful. You will go back and read sentences over a second time. They literally come alive on the page and the familiarity of growing up gay come through in this book. It brought back a lot of memories and pain of not being able to be yourself in the society everyone else is growing up in. When Santaiago take a trip back to his home country as an adult life there is different. It's much rougher and he is exploring his relationship with men and who he is a person. This is a great book for people who loving gay coming out stories and doesn't try to sugarcoat things. There are graphic scenes or scenes that may may you uncomfortable but it's the characters reality and that is the reason we read books. Understanding one another and how difficulties shape our lifes for good or bad. We must work through them so we can become the person we want to be and live a life that is truly authentic. If you choose to do anything else the reuslts will usually not make you happy. This book will become a classic in the canon of gay literature. Thank you to Riverhead Books and Netgaley for the read.
June 17, 2024
Advanced reader's copy
This is one of those books that will haunt my mind for a long time. It is an incredibly compelling read that I found myself completely absorbed by. For starters, I loved the characters. Every single one of them, no matter how insignificant, felt so incredibly real, so truly human, like I could read through the page and touch them. And the relationships they had were so complex, so raw and authentic and messy and captivating. Somehow I found myself caring for all of them, no matter their flaws or toxic behaviors. I do not think I have ever gotten that sort of level of experience from a book before. I also liked how the book was organized, moving roughly chronologically through Santiago’s life but not focusing too hard on the actual number that increases every year, but rather the experiences that cause someone to truly grow up and age and change. I did struggle a bit with just how dense literary the writing style was, and I didn’t love the switch from third person to first person and back to third person. But overall I enjoyed this book.
Thank you Penguin Group Riverhead and Netgalley for the free advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
This is one of those books that will haunt my mind for a long time. It is an incredibly compelling read that I found myself completely absorbed by. For starters, I loved the characters. Every single one of them, no matter how insignificant, felt so incredibly real, so truly human, like I could read through the page and touch them. And the relationships they had were so complex, so raw and authentic and messy and captivating. Somehow I found myself caring for all of them, no matter their flaws or toxic behaviors. I do not think I have ever gotten that sort of level of experience from a book before. I also liked how the book was organized, moving roughly chronologically through Santiago’s life but not focusing too hard on the actual number that increases every year, but rather the experiences that cause someone to truly grow up and age and change. I did struggle a bit with just how dense literary the writing style was, and I didn’t love the switch from third person to first person and back to third person. But overall I enjoyed this book.
Thank you Penguin Group Riverhead and Netgalley for the free advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
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