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Bones Worth Breaking
Bones Worth Breaking is a portrait of the unbreakable bond between brothers and a reckoning with the global forces that shaped them.
Nobody around David Martinez saw how quickly he was breaking apart except for his younger brother, Mike. They stood out in mixed-race in a Mormon community that, in the years before David’s birth, considered Black people ineligible for salvation. The Martinez brothers were raised to be “good boys,” definitely not to get high, skateboard all night, or get arrested, all of which they did with zeal. Then their paths diverged. David went on a two-year mission trip to Brazil like his father before him, and Mike stayed in the States, finding himself in and out of prison. When David returned, in the middle of the still-unnamed opioid epidemic, things had irrevocably changed, and in 2021, Mike unexpectedly died in prison.
Martinez writes with a serrated edge, as viscerally felt as an exposed nerve, and transforms from a stoic boy constantly seeking escape to a vulnerable man eager to contextualize the legacies and losses that have shaped his life. With a wild, ragged velocity―flipping and soaring like a pro skater―Martinez defies a linear telling of his life and tackles topics from abuse and racism to writing and capturing the meaning of the specific nostalgia of saudade .
Bones Worth Breaking is a portrait of the unbreakable bond between brothers who were robbed of the chance to grow old together, and a reckoning with the brutal global forces that let so many poor young men of color fall perilously through the cracks.
Nobody around David Martinez saw how quickly he was breaking apart except for his younger brother, Mike. They stood out in mixed-race in a Mormon community that, in the years before David’s birth, considered Black people ineligible for salvation. The Martinez brothers were raised to be “good boys,” definitely not to get high, skateboard all night, or get arrested, all of which they did with zeal. Then their paths diverged. David went on a two-year mission trip to Brazil like his father before him, and Mike stayed in the States, finding himself in and out of prison. When David returned, in the middle of the still-unnamed opioid epidemic, things had irrevocably changed, and in 2021, Mike unexpectedly died in prison.
Martinez writes with a serrated edge, as viscerally felt as an exposed nerve, and transforms from a stoic boy constantly seeking escape to a vulnerable man eager to contextualize the legacies and losses that have shaped his life. With a wild, ragged velocity―flipping and soaring like a pro skater―Martinez defies a linear telling of his life and tackles topics from abuse and racism to writing and capturing the meaning of the specific nostalgia of saudade .
Bones Worth Breaking is a portrait of the unbreakable bond between brothers who were robbed of the chance to grow old together, and a reckoning with the brutal global forces that let so many poor young men of color fall perilously through the cracks.
400 pages, Paperback
First published April 9, 2024
13 people are currently reading
2488 people want to read
About the author
David Martinez
1 book4 followersDavid Martinez earned his MFA from UC Riverside Palm Desert and previously taught English and creative writing at Glendale Community College in Arizona. He is a dual citizen of the United States and Brazil and has lived all over both countries as well as in Puerto Rico. His work has appeared in The Coachella Review, The Los Angeles Review of Books, Broken Pencil, and Automata Review. He lives in Glendale, Arizona.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
March 14, 2024
You know that feeling when a guy you took a medieval lit course with in college like a decade ago shows up at the bookstore where you work and hands you an ARC of his book that's being published by FSG? And that book ends up being a devestating memoir about undiagnosed mental illness, addiction, systemic racism, and family tragedy?? I guess this is what Kafka meant about the axe and the frozen sea and all that. Also maybe you should link this to the proper author page @Goodreads? Anyway...5 stars.
March 6, 2024
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. I think this book will stick with me for a long time. I’m writing this with tears in my eyes because I feel so much heartache for not only the author and his brother, but also how their experiences show up similarly for so many people.
It’s truly a great example of why I love memoirs and what can come out of a person sharing their story!! I also thought the writing was strong. Nonlinear storytelling doesn’t always work for me, but I thought it fit this perfectly and made the ending hit even harder.
It’s truly a great example of why I love memoirs and what can come out of a person sharing their story!! I also thought the writing was strong. Nonlinear storytelling doesn’t always work for me, but I thought it fit this perfectly and made the ending hit even harder.
April 26, 2024
“The feeling of absence has a word in Portuguese that does not translate into Enligsh: saudade ... I have saudade for everyone and everything that I have left behind”
David Martinez’s memoir ‘Bones Worth Breaking’ is about brotherhood, diverging paths, tenacity, neglect, addiction and the roots they grow from, the systems and regimes that fail us, and nostalgia for the people and moments no longer with us.
This story is emotional and heartbreaking in many ways, as we see how, from a young age, David and his younger brother Mike were the only safe place each other had till the moment he passed. Mixed-raced in a Mormon community, they struggled to belong with parents who found it easier to cope by ignoring and minimizing any problems. Religion, for some, can provide peace, direction, and identity, but it did the opposite for David and created immense shame, trauma, and confusion in his life, which set him on a path of further self-destruction.
“It was get high or deal with the saudades we didn’t yet understand, our own neodivergencies, bipolar disorders, and other mental health issues. We got sick and risked our lives because the only alternative we could conceive of was much worse”
Even with similar beginnings and coping mechanisms, David and Mike had diverging paths — David went on to be an educator and writer while Mike was in and out of prison, which was where he tragically passed.
His story has a lot of accountability, but to me, it represents how damaging neglect is. Kids without emotional support and a stable foundation carry burdens, scars, and trauma they shouldn’t have had.
Through all the loss and struggles, David found his pillars toward healing. I don’t like to romanticize suffering, but some bones can be worth breaking if for the retelling that can connect us and assuage our fears as we trek our journeys.
There are few things as grounding as hearing someone else’s story, and I’m grateful to have spent the past week reading David’s. Thank you, FSG and Ben, for the copy.
David Martinez’s memoir ‘Bones Worth Breaking’ is about brotherhood, diverging paths, tenacity, neglect, addiction and the roots they grow from, the systems and regimes that fail us, and nostalgia for the people and moments no longer with us.
This story is emotional and heartbreaking in many ways, as we see how, from a young age, David and his younger brother Mike were the only safe place each other had till the moment he passed. Mixed-raced in a Mormon community, they struggled to belong with parents who found it easier to cope by ignoring and minimizing any problems. Religion, for some, can provide peace, direction, and identity, but it did the opposite for David and created immense shame, trauma, and confusion in his life, which set him on a path of further self-destruction.
“It was get high or deal with the saudades we didn’t yet understand, our own neodivergencies, bipolar disorders, and other mental health issues. We got sick and risked our lives because the only alternative we could conceive of was much worse”
Even with similar beginnings and coping mechanisms, David and Mike had diverging paths — David went on to be an educator and writer while Mike was in and out of prison, which was where he tragically passed.
His story has a lot of accountability, but to me, it represents how damaging neglect is. Kids without emotional support and a stable foundation carry burdens, scars, and trauma they shouldn’t have had.
Through all the loss and struggles, David found his pillars toward healing. I don’t like to romanticize suffering, but some bones can be worth breaking if for the retelling that can connect us and assuage our fears as we trek our journeys.
There are few things as grounding as hearing someone else’s story, and I’m grateful to have spent the past week reading David’s. Thank you, FSG and Ben, for the copy.
February 6, 2025
3.5 stars. Well, that was an emotional gut punch. His writing is powerful, eloquent, and raw, and he has many important things to say about addiction, the opioid epidemic, systemic racism, grief, mental illness, failure to reckon with history (US and Mormon), the US prison system, education, and trauma from religious shame culture. I have people close to me that struggle with addiction, and this book helped me understand them on a far deeper level.
It isn’t a perfect book, and it would have benefitted from a defter editor. At times it was overly repetitive, and other segments that should have been powerful felt rushed and didn’t make me feel anything at all. It would have been better to take on fewer themes and focus on where his writing was superb – the bond with his brother, the complex factors that underlie addiction, how viscerally he makes you feel the pain of being a young child that believes there is something inherently and irreparably wrong about you, and his lyrical descriptions of what skateboarding meant to him in his teens. The first 250 pages were fantastic, but the last 150ish floundered. Also, I'll own my bias that while many of his critiques of his parents are valid, I had a hard time empathizing with the sheer depth of his angst and blame towards them, as a lot of people that are close to me deal/dealt with way, way worse on a regular basis. They strike me as normal-range incapable and ill-equipped, not abusive incapable and ill-equipped, if that makes sense. Maybe I just know a lot of really screwed up people?
This one will absolutely stay with me, though - heart-breaking, courageous, and full of beauty.
It isn’t a perfect book, and it would have benefitted from a defter editor. At times it was overly repetitive, and other segments that should have been powerful felt rushed and didn’t make me feel anything at all. It would have been better to take on fewer themes and focus on where his writing was superb – the bond with his brother, the complex factors that underlie addiction, how viscerally he makes you feel the pain of being a young child that believes there is something inherently and irreparably wrong about you, and his lyrical descriptions of what skateboarding meant to him in his teens. The first 250 pages were fantastic, but the last 150ish floundered. Also, I'll own my bias that while many of his critiques of his parents are valid, I had a hard time empathizing with the sheer depth of his angst and blame towards them, as a lot of people that are close to me deal/dealt with way, way worse on a regular basis. They strike me as normal-range incapable and ill-equipped, not abusive incapable and ill-equipped, if that makes sense. Maybe I just know a lot of really screwed up people?
This one will absolutely stay with me, though - heart-breaking, courageous, and full of beauty.
June 3, 2024
It's an emotionally heavy book, and tbh it drags on a bit. But it's genuine, it's memoir, and there were many aspects of the writing and the story told that I connected to. I recommend to memoir readers
May 16, 2024
In David Martinez's poignant debut memoir, "Bones Worth Breaking," he navigates the complex terrain of loss, trauma, and identity with a raw and introspective voice that captivates from start to finish. Martinez delves into the harrowing journey of his incarcerated brother's death during the COVID-19 pandemic, intertwining it with their shared childhood marked by substance abuse and marginalization.
From the outset, Martinez paints a vivid picture of two immigrant skateboarding kids struggling to find their place in a world that seems stacked against them. Through evocative prose, he masterfully illustrates the wounds inflicted by oppression and familial dysfunction, offering a searing critique of the American prejudice and the toll it takes on those ensnared within its confines.
One of the memoir's most compelling aspects is Martinez's unwavering love for his brother, which permeates every page despite the pain and heartache that underscores their relationship. Through reminiscences of childhood escapades and heartfelt reflections on their shared struggles, Martinez illuminates the profound bond that sustained them in the face of adversity.
"Bones Worth Breaking" is as much a reckoning with the past as it is a search for identity and belonging. Martinez grapples with questions of race, heritage, and belonging, weaving together threads of his mixed-race ancestry with a keen sense of introspection and self-awareness. His exploration of cultural identity is both poignant and revelatory, offering readers a window into the complexities of navigating multiple worlds.
At its core, this memoir is a testament to human resilience and the power of relational bonds. Martinez's unflinching honesty and vulnerability invite readers into his world, inviting them to bear witness to his pain and triumphs alike.
Throughout the narrative, Martinez skillfully tackles themes of intergenerational trauma, dysfunctional families, and the enduring legacy of addiction. His prose is lyrical and emotive, infused with a sense of urgency and longing that lingers long after the final page is turned.
In conclusion, "Bones Worth Breaking" is a haunting and unforgettable read exploring racism, incarceration, religious trauma, and the American opioid epidemic. Martinez's courageous storytelling and unflinching honesty make this memoir a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of trauma, identity, and the bonds that hold us together in the darkest of times.
📖 Recommended For: Advocates for Social Justice and Prison Abolition, Readers Interested in Family Trauma Memoirs, Those Seeking Insightful Narratives on Mixed-Race Identity, Fans of Memoirs That Blend Cultural Critique with Personal Reflection.
🔑 Key Themes: Critique of the American Prison System, Sibling Bonding and Loss, Exploration of Mixed-Race Ancestry and Identity, Familial Dysfunction and Healing, Religious Trauma and Deconstruction.
Content / Trigger Warnings: Gore (severe), Drug Use (severe), Drug Abuse (severe), Grief (moderate), Childhood Sexual Abuse (moderate - Chapter 6), Death (moderate), Mental Illness (moderate), Child Abuse (moderate), Pandemic (minor), Gun Violence (minor), Miscarriage (minor), Cancer (minor), Sexual Content (minor), Homophobia (minor), Racism (minor).
From the outset, Martinez paints a vivid picture of two immigrant skateboarding kids struggling to find their place in a world that seems stacked against them. Through evocative prose, he masterfully illustrates the wounds inflicted by oppression and familial dysfunction, offering a searing critique of the American prejudice and the toll it takes on those ensnared within its confines.
One of the memoir's most compelling aspects is Martinez's unwavering love for his brother, which permeates every page despite the pain and heartache that underscores their relationship. Through reminiscences of childhood escapades and heartfelt reflections on their shared struggles, Martinez illuminates the profound bond that sustained them in the face of adversity.
"Bones Worth Breaking" is as much a reckoning with the past as it is a search for identity and belonging. Martinez grapples with questions of race, heritage, and belonging, weaving together threads of his mixed-race ancestry with a keen sense of introspection and self-awareness. His exploration of cultural identity is both poignant and revelatory, offering readers a window into the complexities of navigating multiple worlds.
At its core, this memoir is a testament to human resilience and the power of relational bonds. Martinez's unflinching honesty and vulnerability invite readers into his world, inviting them to bear witness to his pain and triumphs alike.
Throughout the narrative, Martinez skillfully tackles themes of intergenerational trauma, dysfunctional families, and the enduring legacy of addiction. His prose is lyrical and emotive, infused with a sense of urgency and longing that lingers long after the final page is turned.
In conclusion, "Bones Worth Breaking" is a haunting and unforgettable read exploring racism, incarceration, religious trauma, and the American opioid epidemic. Martinez's courageous storytelling and unflinching honesty make this memoir a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of trauma, identity, and the bonds that hold us together in the darkest of times.
📖 Recommended For: Advocates for Social Justice and Prison Abolition, Readers Interested in Family Trauma Memoirs, Those Seeking Insightful Narratives on Mixed-Race Identity, Fans of Memoirs That Blend Cultural Critique with Personal Reflection.
🔑 Key Themes: Critique of the American Prison System, Sibling Bonding and Loss, Exploration of Mixed-Race Ancestry and Identity, Familial Dysfunction and Healing, Religious Trauma and Deconstruction.
Content / Trigger Warnings: Gore (severe), Drug Use (severe), Drug Abuse (severe), Grief (moderate), Childhood Sexual Abuse (moderate - Chapter 6), Death (moderate), Mental Illness (moderate), Child Abuse (moderate), Pandemic (minor), Gun Violence (minor), Miscarriage (minor), Cancer (minor), Sexual Content (minor), Homophobia (minor), Racism (minor).
April 8, 2024
WOW! What a hard look at a hard life.
BONES WORTH BREAKING, a memoir by David Martinez is a very sad look at the years and lives lost to drug use/abuse. (So TRIGGER WARNING there.)
Mixed race (Black and Latino) brothers David and Mike have had a really hard upbringing. They moved around A LOT and were always the new kids who didn’t fit in. But they had each other, always. They were each other’s best friend. From high jinx in the neighborhood to using drugs in a back alley, the two of them stuck together through thick and thin. Stints in rehab for Mike and a two year mission for David eventually led them both right back to using, which ultimately ended with Mike dying in prison and David finally getting clean. But the journey…
There were times in this one where I was literally bawling and had to walk away to collect myself. It was so powerful to me as I learned how both boys struggled with their religious doctrines and their realities. Issues of race, class, identities, abandonment, sexual abuse, is it any wonder that the boys ended up where the did? While I strongly felt bad for the author, I cheered his perseverance and rejoiced in his determination to better his life. I also loved the analogy of skateboarding. Having raised two boys crazy about skateboarding themselves, I know the hours upon hours it takes to master a kick flip or an Ollie or a 180 or 360. The time, the dogged perseverance, and yes, the broken bones are all worth it in the when you get it just right. I am glad that Mr. Martinez has ‘landed it’ and pray that his new journey as an educator will benefit today’s youth. Congratulations Mr. Martinez! A JOB WELL DONE!
Thank you to NetGalley and Farrah, Straus &Giroux for this ARC opportunity. All opinions are my own and given voluntarily.
BONES WORTH BREAKING, a memoir by David Martinez is a very sad look at the years and lives lost to drug use/abuse. (So TRIGGER WARNING there.)
Mixed race (Black and Latino) brothers David and Mike have had a really hard upbringing. They moved around A LOT and were always the new kids who didn’t fit in. But they had each other, always. They were each other’s best friend. From high jinx in the neighborhood to using drugs in a back alley, the two of them stuck together through thick and thin. Stints in rehab for Mike and a two year mission for David eventually led them both right back to using, which ultimately ended with Mike dying in prison and David finally getting clean. But the journey…
There were times in this one where I was literally bawling and had to walk away to collect myself. It was so powerful to me as I learned how both boys struggled with their religious doctrines and their realities. Issues of race, class, identities, abandonment, sexual abuse, is it any wonder that the boys ended up where the did? While I strongly felt bad for the author, I cheered his perseverance and rejoiced in his determination to better his life. I also loved the analogy of skateboarding. Having raised two boys crazy about skateboarding themselves, I know the hours upon hours it takes to master a kick flip or an Ollie or a 180 or 360. The time, the dogged perseverance, and yes, the broken bones are all worth it in the when you get it just right. I am glad that Mr. Martinez has ‘landed it’ and pray that his new journey as an educator will benefit today’s youth. Congratulations Mr. Martinez! A JOB WELL DONE!
Thank you to NetGalley and Farrah, Straus &Giroux for this ARC opportunity. All opinions are my own and given voluntarily.
February 12, 2025
This memoir is gut-wrenching, heart-breaking, and profound. It is the complete and utter bearing of the author’s soul, written in a way that is bound to either leave a mark on your own or, at the very least, change your perspective in some way or another. It tells the story of two brothers who share a soul bond and the grief that comes with the unexpected breaking of that bond through death. He expertly showcases the emotional trauma of survival and grappling with the past in hindsight of loss. He highlights the broken system of organized religion through his own personal, deeply detailed, and thought-provoking experience. He captures the opioid epidemic in a way only a true survivor of it could and presents the utter truth of just how much of a grip it has on individuals impacted by it. He calls attention to racism in America and his own encounters with it in a way that any individual, no matter what background, can understand and gain perspective. It is complex yet understandable, poetic yet real, harrowing yet hopeful, nostalgic yet timely. A truly significant story.
December 15, 2024
I feel bad giving this a '1'-star review because Martinez obviously wrote it from the heart. The saudade he has for his tragically lost brother is real and Martinez's biracial/Mormon experience should have made for an intriguing reading experience.
But, the book plods along with recollections that just are not very interesting...or fully fleshed out. For example, as both he and his brother sink further into addiction, Martinez makes repeated references to the questionable upbringing both experienced at the hands of their parents--implied as perhaps, a reason for their life's choices. From what he describes, however, their upbringing seemed pretty run-of-the-mill to me...nothing traumatic enough to lead down a dark life's path. There could be more to this, but it is not evident in the writing.
It is almost as though Martinez wanted to get intimate and personal with the reader, but not quite intimate and personal enough.
But, the book plods along with recollections that just are not very interesting...or fully fleshed out. For example, as both he and his brother sink further into addiction, Martinez makes repeated references to the questionable upbringing both experienced at the hands of their parents--implied as perhaps, a reason for their life's choices. From what he describes, however, their upbringing seemed pretty run-of-the-mill to me...nothing traumatic enough to lead down a dark life's path. There could be more to this, but it is not evident in the writing.
It is almost as though Martinez wanted to get intimate and personal with the reader, but not quite intimate and personal enough.
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August 6, 2024I haaaate not liking a memoir, but this definitely wasn't my favorite. the "exciting" parts of David's life felt like they were skipped over or explained entirely too quickly, while other parts dragged on for what felt like eternity. it was also quite repetitive, and whole lines were repeated throughout the book. his story is quite compelling and heartbreaking, and he did overcome a lot of things, but I didn't feel the heart and emotion whatsoever.
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April 9, 2024#GoodreadsGiveaway
May 6, 2024
Powerful. Good information. Honest
September 4, 2024
Sad and reflective, about a young man and his brother's descent into drugs and depression.
September 8, 2024
Not my favorite. Dragged on for too long on underdeveloped scenes/ memories.
August 25, 2025
I always feel patronizing trying to devise something to say after reading a memoir. I’m very thankful to read this book and very thankful that my sister introduced it to me!
April 20, 2024
I waited several weeks after reading this memoir to write this review, because the book gave me so much to feel and think about. This is one of the most moving books I've read in a long time. Martinez writes so eloquently and powerfully about siblinghood as a form of bearing witness - how in some ways, a sibling might be the only one in your life who can see your truest, most carefully guarded self, who really knows you for who you are and not only who you pretend to be. I cried at a few points while reading this book because it affected me deeply. I highly highly recommend it as a fellow memoirist.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews