Dole, Mayra Lazara - Down to the Bone

[oyceter]

Laura Amores is kicked out of Catholic school when a nun finds a note sent to her from her girlfriend, Marlena. She's then kicked out of the house by her mother. She manages to find shelter with her best friend Soli, and she spends most of the book trying to figure out her sexuality and what communities she wants to belong to.

Like much of coming-of-age YA, the storyline is not the most original, but Lauri's voice is very lively, and I love how Dole populates her book with Latin@s of all kinds. And I really love that there is an important POC/POC interracial friendship (Soli is black)! Dole also includes genderqueer characters, a few mentions of drag queens, and transgendered characters, although the central conflict still revolves around Laura identifying as a lesbian or not.

Some of the conflicts are rather obvious for the genre—there's the encounter with the homophobe, the boyfriend, the non-accepting family—and Dole doesn't always deal with them in ways that make them more than their outlines. Lauri's voice also doesn't always work for me, but I suspect that's because I'm pretty far from being a Latina lesbian teen in Miami. Still, the book feels very now and very alive, and I really love the communities Dole portrays in the book.

I'm looking forward to what Dole does next; I think she has a good voice and would love to see her tackle less common storylines.

Copy won from Color Online. Many thanks!

Comments

Re: your sentiments

[oyceter]

Thanks for all your comments here, it's always interesting hearing what the author intended. That said, the "I wish you'd read it thinking about..." feels uncomfortably close to territory regarding authorial intent and reader interpretation, and I'd like to stay away from there. I don't mind arguing about interpretations at all, or clarifying intent, but I don't like saying reading against authorial intent is less right, particularly when it comes to issues of oppression.

interpretation

[(Anonymous)]

you're right. it's just the way cubans speak. we always say, "i wish you'd done it this way or that way..." and it doesn't carry the same meaning you might think... it's just a cultural way of being friendly and stating a wish... reading against authorial intent is RIGHT! if it's what you read, then more power to it! thanks for sharing and for being so upfront. i appreciate your brutal honesty.

Re: interpretation

[(Anonymous)]

my name didn't show on the above comment. it's me, mayra.

Re: interpretation

[oyceter]

No prob, and sorry for misunderstanding! I wasn't quite sure about the meaning so I figured I'd err on the side of checking.

Re: interpretation

[mayraldole.wordpress.com]

no prob. believe it or not, i get u. thanks for speaking ur mind. i respect that.