The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz is a simply amazing book. Diaz’s full quote is as follows:
“But if these years have taught me anything it is this: you can never run away. Not ever. The only way out is in.”
Diaz’s writing so so fresh, so alive that reading his books is more like hanging out at an edgy downtown club where you’re a little excited and a little uncomfortable all at the same time. His other book, This is How You Lose Her, is also full of life, spice, and tragi-comic wisdom. I’ll never write like Diaz but because I’ve read him, I’m a different writer. Reading his work will change you: that’s how good he is.
Fresh, darlings. When they talk about a writer having a unique voice, Junot Diaz is IT. Read him and learn, read him and hate his characters and the world they inhabit. Most of all, read him and wonder why reading feels different when you’re caught up in Diaz’s tales. Maybe it’s because Diaz is actually a poet who writes novels.
What would you sip while contemplating this quote?
I wouldn’t need to drink a thing while reading Diaz because reading his books means drinking in words. However, while contemplating “The only way out is in” from The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (referring to Oscar Wilde, pronounced Dominican-style), I might choose something equally paradoxical. A wine that combines opposites, for example, a Frenzy Pinot Noir. Smooth yet spicy. About $11.99 a bottle and drastically under priced. Hard to find. Look for it.
Look for my books too. Paris Adieu for those of you with a taste for all things French and an adult coming-of-age story; Running from Love for runners and lovers, or my latest book, Lyric, to find out how a former hedge fund marketer finds happiness in a simpler life.
[…] author Junot Díaz’s epic novel "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," he writes, "But if these years have taught me anything it is this: you can never run away. Not ever. The […]