Requiem for a Dream

This was a difficult read for me. I dislike having to wade through phonetically transcribed dialects such as the 70's new Yawk druggie lingo in this book. I want to spend my reading time following the storyline, understanding the characters, and considering the ideas, not have brainpower siphoned off simply parsing what the hell the characters are saying. I also find Selby's refusal to use apostrophes annoying. [Another phenomenal novel I read recently, The Road by Cormac McCarthy, also avoids the use of apostrophes; I'd love to know what the motivation for this is]

But Selby has my absolute admiration for his brave and honest exploration of human misery, of the ways in which we fail each other and ourselves, of good intentions gone show more awry, of the lies we tell (again, each other and ourselves), and the sorrow we try to cover up in ways that ultimately cause more sorrow.

I've heard several people say that the characters are "unlikeable", and I could not disagree more. They are believable, complex (the Marion character in particular is much more fully drawn than in the movie), deeply flawed but deeply human, and should inspire compassion in someone who is compassionATE. If someone finds the characters "unlikeable", I'd venture a guess that that person hasn't had many authentic relationships in their life. This book is definitely not for people who prefer social pleasantries, masks, and superficial relationships. To know someone deeply is to know their pain, their flaws, and their broken-ness. Selby knew people. show less

It is rather dark and depressing but since I was prepared for that I was able to keep on reading. Out of all the people profiled the one I felt did not deserve her fate was the mother who got hooked on diet pills because she wanted to lose weight to fit into her red dress to be on TV. The medical profession enabled her addiction and then denied her the appropriate treatment. I would like to think that would not happen any more but I am not so sure. As for the three younger people, they sought their own addictions so I couldn't feel too sorry for them but, of course, their fates were horrible.

And its not as though dangerous drug addictions occur just in big cities with heroin. Just after I read this book I read an article about crack show more cocaine and ecstasy and the effects those drugs have on users. Crack cocaine apparently is instantly addictive and because it is relatively cheap it is accessible to lots of people in a way that heroin never was.

The writing style of this book was terrific. It really made me feel like I was right in the room with the people talking. That's a rare gift. show less

Published in 1978, this is the story of four people who get addicted to drugs while in pursuit of their capitalistic dreams. Sara Goldfarb gets a call about a possible television appearance on a game show. In attempting to lose weight, she becomes addicted to diet pills. Her son, Harry, girlfriend, Marion, and friend, Tyrone, want to open a business and improve their lives. They decide to do this by selling heroin but end up as addicts. There is a lot of tragedy in this book. It seems to be an indictment of the “get rich quick” mentality that was (and is still) so prevalent in American society. This is a bleak story. I picked it up because it is on the Boxall List, but it is definitely too depressing for me.

Dice Zara Snapp en su Diccionario de drogas (2015) sobre la heroína: “A través de la historia, muchos artistas han hablado de la sensación de felicidad total y el estado de euforia incomparable que la heroína les generó”. Un contraste total con la realidad tenebrosa que representa una adicción. Réquiem por un sueño debe ser seguramente uno de los libros más devastadores que se han escrito. La tristeza de la soledad, el yugo implacable de las adicciones y el resquebrajamiento de los sueños rotos, van devorando a los cuatro personajes principales: Sara, Harry, Marion y Tyrone. Ellos viven soñando con aparecer en programas de televisión y la riqueza que pueda permitirles escapar del sórdido entorno donde se desenvuelven; show more sin embargo, para la autodestrucción, nadie como el ser humano. Los protagonistas se atiborran de pastillas, pican sus venas con heroína y se prostituyen en el húmedo Nueva York de Coney Island, teniendo a Manhattan al fondo como testigo del cruel autosabotaje. La novela de Hubert Selby Jr. condensa en 337 páginas la crónica detallada de un descenso a los infiernos de las drogas y la melancolía, con personajes marginados que viven perdiendo la esperanza de alcanzar el sueño americano. Publicada por primera vez en 1978, Réquiem por un sueño tuvo una reedición en el año 2000 a propósito del estreno de la adaptación cinematográfica del director Darren Aronofsky, un filme que comparte con el libro el espíritu lúgubre de la naturaleza humana. Clásico de la literatura Junkie, en Réquiem por un sueño las letras de Hubert Selby Jr. van delineando las andanzas repulsivas de sus protagonistas, con un ritmo que hacia las últimas páginas, se hace insoportablemente desolador. El autor vivió en carne propia las tinieblas de las adicciones, primero con las drogas y después con el alcohol; murió en 2004 por problemas pulmonares. Aronofsky escribe en el prólogo: “El héroe era el enemigo de los personajes: la adicción. El libro es un manifiesto del triunfo de la adicción sobre el espíritu humano. Nos muestra lo que nos hace vacilar, lo que nos hace odiar y lo que nos hace amar. Revela lo que es ser humano. No olvidarás nunca esta lectura.” show less

Selby's depressing portrait of the futility of seeking the American dream, whether it is the personal triumph of appearing on a TV show, the pursuit of riches through drug dealing, or seeing your dreams and talent fade as you sink into endless addiction and exploitation is pretty powerful stuff. Certainly, the depiction of drug dependency and the self-delusion of addicts who think they are still in control, rings with absolute truth--as it should, being drawn from Selby's own life story. Unfortunately, the three addicts, the couple Harry and Marion, and their friend Tyrone, don't have Selby's resiliency. The fourth subject of the book is Harry's mother, Sara, who goes from a couch potato mourning the passing (10 years ago) of her show more husband and oblivious to her son's addiction, to a misled women who believes she is going to appear on a TV show and is willing to do anything necessary to lose the weight so she can fit into her treasured red dress (that she wore to her son's bar mitzvah). Her story is the most pitiful, but also the most contrived and unbelievable, and it definitely mars the effect of the book as a whole.

There is little that is unconvincing about the stories of Harry, Marion, and Tyrone, however. But neither is there any reason for the reader (at least a non drug-addicted reader) to identify with them. There is little back story, and we don't see how they became addicts in the first place, which makes it hard to be very sympathetic. Selby, I suppose, would blame it on the American dream, but I don't think the American dream has drug addiction as a prerequisite. Still, getting inside these characters' heads is quite an experience, although it is sometimes difficult to believe that some of their thoughts come from brains impaired by heroin, marijuana, alcohol, pills, and whatever else they can get their hands on (and use simultaneously!) Harry and Marion also like to listen to Mahler, which seems a little odd.

Many readers will undoubtedly be put off by Selby's writing style, such as his lack of quotation marks and style of running conversations among multiple characters into single paragraphs that are not always completely clear. Still, once you get accustomed to it after a few pages, it isn't hard to follow the story and it provides an immediacy that breaking every conversation into a stream of short paragraphs would kill.

Overall, I'm certainly glad I read this book. It immerses you in a world that is totally alien to most of us, and, depressing as it is, it still manages to provide a grim entertainment. It doesn't rise to the level of profundity or greatness, but it certainly stands out from the pack.

The author bio and family photographs at the end of this Kindle edition are also a nice touch. show less

3.5 stars.

Oh my God, what a terrifying story. The writing style took a bit getting used to but it fit the work perfectly. It flowed and swirled and wouldn't let go - just like the drug addiction it was depicting - and led the reader relentlessly through the horrifying ordeals of Sarah Goldfarb, her son Harry, his best friend Tyrone and his girlfriend Marion, as each succumbs to a drug addiction and lose control over their life completely. The mere reading of it was a racking, chilling experience. I couldn't in all honesty say I enjoyed the book, but it was definitely something that would haunt me for a long time.

I am more than ready to watch the movie now.

I finished reading Requiem for a Dream on the plane on Saturday, and am still amazed by how good it was. I’ve still got scenes running through my head over and over.

It’s a fast-paced stream of consciousness style book, with very little punctuation or use of paragraphs. This goes some way to ape the drug-users’ states of mind, and there is a distinct switch from rapid to slow whenever someone takes a hit.

Which is frequently. Very frequently. If graphic descriptions of hard drug use offend or upset, this is not the book for you. Selby does a fantastic job of putting across the euphoria that each person feels each time they score, and also of the desperation they feel to get that score.

The subplot of the mother’s character, feeding show more a different addiction, is horrifying, especially the resolution. During the last 30 pages, I was genuinely becoming upset each time the narrative switched to her. Anything else I say would spoil it.

The obvious comparison I made in my own head is to our cult British heroin novel, Trainspotting, which I unashamedly adore. The book is fantastic, as are the film and soundtrack. I’ve heard good things about Requiem’s film adaptation, so I will have to check it out soon.

So if you haven’t already picked up Requiem for a Dream, I highly recommend it. show less