Waiting in the Wings: Portrait of a Queer Motherhood

Rating:
Summary: Rather less than luminous
Review: A voice of dissension! Moraga's Waiting in the Wings is drearily narcissistic, toggling between journal entries and narrative over her newborn's struggle for life as a premature infant. While Moraga's early work (Loving in the War Years) offered a radical and fresh vision of Chicanismo, her later work suffers from dogmatic tendencies. Waiting in the Wings serves as a paean to the importance of the author herself with no greater glory other than Moraga's own narrowly defined boundaries of self. The journal entries are particularly self-indulgent, with the author occasionally indulging in worst kind of eugenic planning as she documents the manner in which she conceived (literally, figuratively, and politically) her child. Less a guide to the meaning of Mexican American family and community than a primer for baby boomer selfishness writ large, in the life of their children. Certainly a must-read for her ouevre, but expect no magical enlightenment. Moraga writes here not from the position of outsider but insider, who can produce drivel and still receive accolades. Tiresome, in the final analysis.

Rating:
Summary: making familia from scratch
Review: Moraga's text is a thoughtful meditation on the dialectics of biology and social construction of gender, sexuality, and bodies. She offers very personal reflections on how her choice to bear a child disrupts societal expectations for lesbians and how her choice is also shaped by race & culture. Ultimately, she envisions her child and the ghosts of those who have passed on (her Mexican uncle who died of lung cancer as well as gay male friends who died of AIDS) surrounding him as well as those present as part of a larger community of familia and a future generation that is inclusive of racial-ethnic minorities and sexual minorities. Moraga's trajectory as a writer is fascinating to explore--I would recommend reading The Last Generation before this book, and then reading the new sections from Loving in the War Years afterward. I also would suggest keeping an eye out for Yvonne Yarbro-Bejarano's book on Moraga's work, being published by University of Texas Press.

Rating:
Summary: Luminous!
Review: This is a beautifully written and insightful memoir. Moraga communicates a deep love of self, family and community in this finely crafted volume. I was particularly inspired by the seamless way the recounting of her personal story addressed so many larger political and spiritual issues.(A better case for the honoring of queer famlies could not be made). More than this, however, Moraga is just an exceptionally gifted writer, and this book highlights her luminous talent. One poetic phrase follows another, until the reader is left with one of the most elegant memoirs out there. Read it, and experience a unique glimpse into the heart of her fiercely loving mother's heart.