What a Writer Reads

Precious (the paperback "movie-tie-in version" of the novel Push)
by Sapphire
Contemporary Adult Realistic Fiction
Listed at $8.47 paperback at Amazon
192 pages
A difficult read

The original novel Push has received many literary awards. The actress, Mo'Nique, recently won a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in this film. I have not seen the screen version so this review speaks only to the book, that being said --

This story follows the life of a young girl who struggles through an oppressive life in Harlem. It tackles, head-on, the atrocities and repercussions of child abuse on multiple levels. It is not for everyone. It's an extremely raw slice of reality to which many would prefer to turn a blind eye. The book, however, does not flinch.

The movie was rated R and the book deserves at least that designation. An argument could be made for an X rating based on the graphic nature of several scenes that are far more explicit when described in the detail afforded by the written word. However, these scenes are not gratuitous. They are necessary to the content of the story to ensure that the reader feels the heroine's pain, the ugliness of the evil to which she has been subjected and bravely battles to overcome.

In order to grapple with the issue of illiteracy, the author has written the first portion of her book in the phonetic speech of persons for whom education has been absent or ineffective. Albeit a brilliant approach that let's the reader "experience" the difficulty of actually being illiterate, it makes for a slow and frustrating first half (but then that's the point). The concern then becomes the potential for reader alienation; a percentage of the audience may be tempted to abandon the book. Be assured, as Precious gains her skills, the reading will accelerate proportionately. I, personally, found some of the poetry to be moving but some of the prose to be a bit rambling and repetitive, at times bogging down the story.

To invest oneself in the life of Precious Jones is to ride a class A, high speed roller coaster -- grim, hopeful, grim, hopeful, and so it goes, inching and jerking up the inclines and plummeting into the valleys. This journey successfully chronicles the strength of the human spirit, the ability to live in chaos and yet refuse to be conquered, even when all the odds are stacked against you.

Warning: Explicit Language
Recommended for educators.

That's my five cents worth. I give the book a "3 nickels rating."