Daniel José Older

An evocative multigenerational Cuban-American family story of revolution, loss, and family bonds. Marisol vanished during the Cuban Revolution, disappearing with hardly a trace. Now, shaped by atrocities long-forgotten, her foul-mouthed spirit visits her nephew, Ramon, in modern day New Jersey. Her hope: That her presence will prompt him to unearth their painful family history. Ramon launches a haphazard investigation into the story of his ancestor, unaware of the forces driving him on his search. Along the way, he falls in love, faces a run-in with a murderous gangster, and uncovers the lives of the lost saints who helped Marisol during her imprisonment. The Book of Lost Saints by Daniel José Older is a haunting meditation on family, forgiveness, and the violent struggle to be free. An Imprint Book

The Book of Lost Saints

Boothby

75% rambling filler, 23% heartfelt story that meaningfully connected past with present, 2% beautifully crafted lines that take your breath away

Not a terrible ratio, but was it worth it? I'm not sure

The Book of Lost Saints is an evocative multigenerational Cuban-American family story of revolution, loss, and family bonds from New York Times-bestselling author Daniel José Older. Marisol vanished during the Cuban Revolution, disappearing with hardly a trace. Now, shaped by atrocities long-forgotten, her tenacious spirit visits her nephew, Ramón, in modern-day New Jersey. Her hope: that her presence will prompt him to unearth their painful family history. Ramón launches a haphazard investigation into the story of his ancestor, unaware of the forces driving him on his search. Along the way, he falls in love, faces a run-in with a murderous gangster, and uncovers the lives of the lost saints who helped Marisol during her imprisonment. The Book of Lost Saints by Daniel José Older is a haunting meditation on family, forgiveness, and the violent struggle to be free. An Imprint Book "Spellbinding." —Marlon James, Man Booker Prize-winning author of Black Leopard, Red Wolf "A lyrical, beautiful, devastating, literally haunting journey." —N.K. Jemisin, award-winning author of the Broken Earth trilogy

Didi Chanoch

There are some things which you are likely to encounter in a DJO book. There will be music. There will be complex family stuff (stuff: dynamics, relationships, magical legacies). There will probably be a medical professional. Politics will likely play a part. And a ghost. 

The Book of Lost Saints has all of these, and yet it is an entirely different work from Older's previous. It is a mix of magical realism, urban fantasy, historical fiction, multi-generational family drama. The horror here is not the supernatural kind Older has employed in the past. This time, it's the horror of very real human behavior and history. It may be his best work to date. 

This is a book that deals with the two ways a revolution can fail, both experienced, sequentially, in Cuba. The first being the revolution that succeeds and becomes a version of what it aimed to topple, and the second being the revolution that flat out fails. It deals with how families (one central family, but also some other tangential families) deal with those historical events. Those who take them on, those who avoid and deny. 

It's really good. You should read it.

The Book of Lost Saints

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