The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

Overweight and nerdy Oscar lives with his Dominican American mother and sister in New Jersey and dreams of becoming a renowned author and finding true love, but unfortunately, a family curse stands in the way of his wishes.

Liz says:

“This is a bit hard to get into but it’s well worth the wait. The reader is purposely meant to feel like an outsider, mimicking the immigrant experience. We don’t even know who the narrator is until well into the book and Diaz uses Spanish and Spanglish words and terms that are unfamiliar. Ultimately, however, we very much get into Oscar’s head and sense the enormity of his personal angst and utter sense of loneliness. Mixed in with all of this is a sense of humor giving the book some levity.”