CrashBoomLove: A Novel in Verse

by Juan Felipe Herrera

In this novel in verse--unprecedented in Chicano literature--renowned poet Juan Felipe Herrera illuminates the soul of a generation. Drawn from his own life as well as a lifetime of dedication to young people, CrashBoomLove helps readers understand what it is to be a teen, a migrant worker, and a boy wanting to be a boy.

Sixteen-year-old Cesar Garcia is careening. His father, Papi Cesar, has left the migrant circuit in California for his other wife and children in Denver. Sweet Mama Lucy tries to provide for her son with dichos and tales of her own misspent youth. But at Rambling West High School in Fowlerville, the sides are drawn: Hmongs vs. Chicanos vs. everybody vs. Cesar, the new kid on the block.

Precise and profound, CrashBoomLove will appeal to and resonate with high school readers across the country.

A California farmworker kid's season in hell, told through fast-verse lines that careen to the beat of a fiery heart.

Genres: Poetry, Young Adult, Fiction, Teen, Novel In Verse

155 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 1999

About the author

Juan Felipe Herrera is the only son of Lucha Quintana and Felipe Emilio Herrera; the three were campesinos living from crop to crop on the roads of the San Joaquín Valley, Southern California and the Salinas Valley. Herrera's experiences as the child of migrant farmers have strongly shaped his work, such as the children's book Calling the Doves, which won the Ezra Jack Keats award in 1997. He is a poet, performer, writer, cartoonist, teacher, and activist who draws from real life experiences as well as years of education to inform his work. Community and art has always been part of what has driven Herrera, beginning in the mid-seventies, when he was director of the Centro Cultural de la Raza, an occupied water tank in Balboa Park converted into an arts space for the community.
Herrera’s publications include fourteen collections of poetry, prose, short stories, young adult novels and picture books for children in the last decade with twenty-one books in total.

Reviews

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me a while to get into this book but once I did I couldn't put it down. I love Chicano lit because so much of it resonates with me.

[Lavabearian (Jessica) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the original free verse novel. Like clearly the inspiration to all of the modern novels-in-verse. This is actually more poetic, maybe, and feels more like poems. Cesar has a sad story of self-discovery and unfortunately has to make many mistakes before he can own up to who he wants to be. This covers the full gamut of finding your place in high school to bullying, race identification, drugs and alcohol use, friendship and family. This is a perfect selection for the novels-in-verse lit circle unit.

[Eva-Marie Nevarez · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel kind of bad rating this only one star because it may not be all that bad. I only got a few pages in before I gave up though so I can't really honestly give it even two stars.
I'm somewhat picky when I read books written in verse so maybe that's my main problem here. It irked me a little with the Spanish words too. Obviously, some foreign words will add to a story like this and admittedly, they were all defined at the bottom, even the words that just about anyone would know. There were so many of them. So, so many and I was only a few pages in. It interrupted the story for me and it would have been better to have toned that part down.
The verses just didn't seem to flow for me. I found this at the library the other day while browsing the oh-so-small YA section and I really like the cover. Actually, for me, the cover is the best part of the book.

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love novels in verse. Ok, I'm slightly obsessed with them. I'll read anything in verse, just because it's in verse. And this is a good example right here. I'm not a big fan of urban fiction, and I doubt that I ever would have read this book if it weren't in verse. As far as urban fiction goes, it's a pretty good example. It just didn't do much for me, not being my genre. But I do feel like putting it in verse might miss the audience who would be most likely to enjoy it. I can just picture so many of the boys who would love this book cracking it open, seeing it's in verse, and dropping it again right away.

[Veronica]

Age of Readership:

15-18

Genre:

Novel in verse

Diversity:

Mexican American, mixed neighborhoods and schools

Personal response:

My first thought was the story line was like several of his other books. But I enjoyed this one a bit more because of the way the main character found music and writing as his outlet. That always strikes a nerve for me because music and writing has always been my outlet as well.

Curricular or programming connections:

A neighborhood/school filled with gang violence, broken families, and racial divides is what this book focuses on. I think anything kind of awareness program, or unique perspectives program, would benefit from this book.

[Pernia · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was interesting to read about the experiences of Cesar Garcia, a teenager who is struggling in his life. His father left him awhile ago and he misses him. His mother, Mama Lucy, loves him but he is embarrassed by her. He is embarrassed by being Mexican. His wild group of friends encourage fighting, doing drugs, and driving fast. He is kicked out of his high school and sent to the Continuation school. He gets in a terrible accident and slowly begins to change.

I wanted to read this because some of my students are also migrant workers like Cesar and his family. I thought the poems were very beautiful, but require slow deliberate reading.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three and a half stars.

I feel like I'm not the right person to review this because A) high school stories don't resonate with me very often, and B) novels in verse sometimes frustrate me (I find myself wanting them to be either more like a novel or more like a regular poetry collection).

That said, there's a lot of heart in Herrera's novel, and I feel like it will be just the right book at the right time for some students.

[Gina Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful, strong poetry--no chopped up prose here. One first person narrator. Very contemporary , impressionist language that paint scenes, with short fragment sentences throughout. Herrera's writing creates energy that I don't think could have been generated with traditional prose. It's worth the read.

[Nice · Rating 1 out of 5]

The narration was so boring. I like when a book or a movie pulls me in and the process of learning about the world isn't a chore. In this book, the "slangy/backstory/how things are" part was impossible to wade through. It felt so perfunctory and formulaic. "Ooh, seemingly offhand exposition. I better pay extra close attention..."

[Rylee Polich · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author described the main character with a "buzzed head" wearing "kinky overalls" with "bluish and acrylic spray fat letters" down his pants on the first page. The description of what the main character's hair and clothes look like helps readers form an early opinion of him based on his style and how he presents himself. (Herrera 2).

[Laura Leonard · Rating 3 out of 5]

High school can be tough, just ask Cesar. This novel written in verse tells of his struggles at school. His father left years ago and he lives with his mom. An interesting look into the life of a Mexican-American teen.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jagged, vivid imagery. This novel in verse tracks the uncomfortable, painful bottoming-out of Cesar Garcia and the discovery of hope for both him and his mama Lucy.

[Rikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting story about an Mexican American high school student who struggles with the English language, life in high school, his absent father and peer pressure.