by I was so moved by this essay from the collection Mundo Cruel by Luis Negron, I wish they were all translated (they are currently only available in Spanish). Like I don’t have a huge to-read pile as it is. My edit Algonquin Books offered to send me books yesterday and I had to thank her and ask her to hold off for now, otherwise I will never catch up. But what happened at the end, between Negron and his father and mother. I don’t want to say anything, you should just read this essay.
As it happens I recently started a book by another Algonquin author and I am just loving it. Heading out to Wonderful by Robert Goolrick. “Let me tell you something, son. When you’re young, and you head out to wonderful, everything is fresh and bright as a brand-new penny, but before you get to wonderful you’re going to have to pass through all right. And when you get to all right, stop and take a good, long look, because that may be as far as you’re ever going to go.” A discouraging thought perhaps, but for some reason that sentiment, and this book, are cheering me up. It’s set in 1948 Virginia, and for whatever reason, Goolrick’s 1948 Virginia is where I want to be for now.
A window on my way to … where was I going? Oh! Economy Candy.
