What do you think?
Rate this book
The Buddha Book: A Novel
Dinky, Jose, and Barbara are teens living in the Bronx. Dinky wants to put his father's drug dealing reputation behind him; Jose has just been dumped by his girlfriend who's moved on to the neighborhood's new drug dealer, Angel; Barbara's the smart girl who desperately wants to be noticed. Secretly, Dinky and Jose draw, write, and distribute "Buddha Book," a comic of outrageous tales based on their life in the Bronx. Things change suddenly when, in a fit of rage, Jose murders his ex. Jose wants to turn himself in. But Dinky convinces him that he's committed the perfect crime and would be in great danger if Angel were to discover the real story. The Buddha Book follows Jose as he moves toward acknowledgement of what he has done and finds a way to confess it; details Dinky's escape from the clutches of his father to begin a new life; and traces Barbara's first steps toward becoming a woman. Lyric, inspired, and darkly funny, The Buddha Book is a powerful novel that brilliantly evokes teenagers at war with themselves and with the place in which they live.
- GenresFiction
304 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2001
1 person is currently reading
29 people want to read
About the author
Abraham Rodriguez Jr.
5 books14 followers Author Abraham Rodriguez Jr. is an author well-versed in the hardships of city life. Born and raised in the Bronx, New York, he has opened the doors of inner-city America to the world by writing about an environment he knows best: his own.
Mr. Rodriguez is best known for his books The Boy Without A Flag, a 1993 New York Times Notable Book of the Year, and Spidertown, winner of a 1995 American Book Award, which has also appeared in British, Dutch, German, and Spanish editions. Spidertown has been optioned by Columbia Pictures.
Mr. Rodgriguez's newest novel, The Buddha Book, which will be published by St. Martin's Press, is scheduled for release this year.
His work has appeared in dozens of anthologies and literary magazines including Story, Best Stories from New Writers, Chattahoochie Review, and Alternative Fiction & Poetry. He was the recipient of a grant from the New York Foundation for the Arts in 2000, and he has served as a literary panel member on the NewYork State Council of the Arts.
Mr. Rodriguez's current projects include writing the narration for a film called "Chenrezi Vision," and starting an East-Coast small press named "Art Bridge."
- From http://www.nationalbook.org/arodrigue...
Mr. Rodriguez is best known for his books The Boy Without A Flag, a 1993 New York Times Notable Book of the Year, and Spidertown, winner of a 1995 American Book Award, which has also appeared in British, Dutch, German, and Spanish editions. Spidertown has been optioned by Columbia Pictures.
Mr. Rodgriguez's newest novel, The Buddha Book, which will be published by St. Martin's Press, is scheduled for release this year.
His work has appeared in dozens of anthologies and literary magazines including Story, Best Stories from New Writers, Chattahoochie Review, and Alternative Fiction & Poetry. He was the recipient of a grant from the New York Foundation for the Arts in 2000, and he has served as a literary panel member on the NewYork State Council of the Arts.
Mr. Rodriguez's current projects include writing the narration for a film called "Chenrezi Vision," and starting an East-Coast small press named "Art Bridge."
- From http://www.nationalbook.org/arodrigue...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 25, 2017
i described this to my wife as an urban Latino version of Sherman Alexie’s Absolutely true diary of a part-time indian. add very adult themes. some of them dark. very dark.
the story is tripartite and interwoven cleverly. the window into another culture and lifestyle is educational and absorbing (i am white and from the midwest). the characters are well-drawn; i care even about the ones that are on stage only briefly. no one is truly 2D in this.
the dynamic tensions played out between school, home, and “street” life feels natural. the prose conveys deep meaning in few words and sometimes feels like it’s going to slip into full-on beat poetry mode.
art is at the core of this book and is used simultaneously as rebellion to the status quo and pathway to stability and peace. the central hub around which this vehicle orbits fuzzes fantasy and reality, like walking the borderlands of the neighborhood full of drug dealing posses, diamond bracelet tagged girls, and .22s named Carlotta. the mystical destination Out is always there but not always with a clear path to it nor is it universally desired.
the book does really belong in the same category as Alexie’s book, the Outsiders, Perks of being a wallflower and the like except that it’s both more raw and polished. raw because some of the content is really messed up (like Gone girl or American psycho messed); polished because a lot of the writing is nearly lyrical, swollen with subtle metaphors and tropes.
the story is tripartite and interwoven cleverly. the window into another culture and lifestyle is educational and absorbing (i am white and from the midwest). the characters are well-drawn; i care even about the ones that are on stage only briefly. no one is truly 2D in this.
the dynamic tensions played out between school, home, and “street” life feels natural. the prose conveys deep meaning in few words and sometimes feels like it’s going to slip into full-on beat poetry mode.
art is at the core of this book and is used simultaneously as rebellion to the status quo and pathway to stability and peace. the central hub around which this vehicle orbits fuzzes fantasy and reality, like walking the borderlands of the neighborhood full of drug dealing posses, diamond bracelet tagged girls, and .22s named Carlotta. the mystical destination Out is always there but not always with a clear path to it nor is it universally desired.
the book does really belong in the same category as Alexie’s book, the Outsiders, Perks of being a wallflower and the like except that it’s both more raw and polished. raw because some of the content is really messed up (like Gone girl or American psycho messed); polished because a lot of the writing is nearly lyrical, swollen with subtle metaphors and tropes.
September 8, 2018
All time fav.
January 9, 2009
I really love this book. I just love the way it's written like a long poem and that I would want the characters to be my homies. Underground comic book, nerdy latin old-school mission-type but southbronx version kids on there way to taking over...what more could you ask for.
November 14, 2015
I read this book for a multi-cultural studies class back at UW-Madison. I didn't really care for this book. Way too long, useless descriptions of sex and violence. I found it to be quite gratuitous after the first 45 pages. I'm not interested in any of Rodriguez's future writing projects either.
October 14, 2009
An Ok read, but I just didn't love it. compared to spidertown, i found the characters less interesting and the storyline less compelling.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews