Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood

I started as an audio book and went to paper. The audio was just taking me too long. What a beautifully sad book. I wonder if I would have the same strength to make it through a couple of years like that?! And not go crazy? Or just insanely sad?
It's a great read, I loved all the characters and the writing style. The swearing was a little much, but it was easier once I was reading it.

It's the late 60s and Sammy and Juliana are in Hollywood - Hollywood, New Mexico that is. It's a time of change for both the country and Sammy and his friends. Saenz' biggest strength is his lovable, flawed characters (Gigi was my favorite, followed by Mrs. Apodaca). With drama and humor in great heaps, Saenz has crafted a believably harsh, yet hopeful world.

Eh. My main beef with the book is that it is badly-written and predictable: characters are never introduced until it is time to get rid of them, no matter how central to Sammy's emotional life said character is allegedly claimed to be. And ALL characters who are not Sammy are gotten rid of.

Julianna is killed in the opening paragraphs, and from that point forward, everyone who Sammy cares about is either drafted, beaten up and sent away, or killed. In the later chapters, the author goes back and properly kills most of the characters who had escaped actually dying -- those who had been drafted or sent away. The scant handful who make it to the final chapter are killed off, one per sentence, in the final paragraph.

And did I say show more predictable? Oh, goodness, yes, predictable.

There's a lot of good stuff about this book -- it's a rich portrait of Las Crucas life circa 1967, for example -- but after a while, the ability to predict every plot "development" a chapter in advance saps at the book's foundations. show less

I gave up not too far into this book; I've been carrying it around for a few days, and not reading it, opting instead to stare out the window while on the bus or play with my phone. My reluctance was not because I actively disliked it; I just felt completely unattached to the main character and disinterested in what was going to happen next. It just didn't feel like a new story, like something that I hadn't already read or seen several times before.

I was frustrated with the narrative voice because it's written in short sentences. And I mean short. Like this. The narrator's voice ends up stilted. Like this. I did love the fact that the dialogue was actually bilingual, as the characters moved into Spanish and back to English in one show more conversation, because it felt real, the way people who are fluent in two languages really talk, and because it's never translated directly so you have to either rely on your knowledge of Spanish (I was pretty proud of myself) or just go with the flow. show less

This book begins at the end of Sammy's Jr. year at Las Cruces High. Sammy is a shy, well mannered boy in love with Juliana, a complex, tough girl whose father is abusive. After Juliana is killed along with her siblings by her father, Sammy must remake his life.

His senior year, 1968-69, is set against the Vietnam War, where one of the guys from his barrio, Hollywood, has been sent, and student demonstrations around the country.

It is an intense look at life from the point of view of a young boy who has experienced way too much death for one his age and whose memories of those he has lost are full of life and spirit.

Sammy struggles with some heavy-duty issues surrounding his life in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Living in the barrio of Hollywood, Sammy experiences racism, first love, murder and poverty. He is surrounded by friends who come to his aid when needed, a family full of love and respect for one another, and a neighbor who always offers advice in an attempt to assist the young in their journey toward adulthood. Through all the struggles, Sammy keeps hold of his dream to go to college. Author Saenz tells a realistic story about a young man coming of age under difficult circumstances and gives the reader an ability to care about and hope for the characters he's created.

Set in 1968 during the Vietnam War, 17 year old Sammy, a moderately happy and good student from the barrio in New Mexico called Hollywood, faces his senior year with the violent loss of three friends. Sammy manages to stay on a straight and narrow path with the support of his father, love for his sister, and tough love from a secretive yet noisy neighbor. At times the dialog is difficult to comprehend as characters speak in a mix of English and Spanish. Although it is set in 1968, this story could happen in 2008 with the saddness of war, death, drugs, alcohol, and friendship. Use with caution for students as it focuses on the aforementioned events, use of significant profanity in both languages, and the young characters chain smoke.