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Rating: Summary: Mediocre at best Review: Being a mexican-american myself, I bought this book hoping this would be another gem of a book lending insight into the mexican-american experience, or any experiece for that matter. But this thin little book is a disappointment. The short stories are wrought with a bitterness and hostility towards anyone who crosses the narrator's path. Serros' tries too hard to convey her narrators as victims -- I even know that you don't have to be a chicana to have family members discourage you early on from becoming what you want to be when you grow up, which seems to be a central theme in her book -- that people in her youth kept holding her back. This theme gets really old really quickly. Serros should have stuck to her more humorous side than to resort to the whining and self-pity.
Rating: Summary: A great book! Funny, touching and hysterical, you'll love it Review: I didn't realize how many laughs and crying jags could come out of such a small book. I live one town away from Oxnard and am so inspired my Michele's writing. Finding Michele's book was like seeing the proverbial light. Although I knew I wasn't alone in my cultural confusion, I'd never really explored those feelings. Being a member of the first American born generation in a Mexican family, her stories really hit home. This book is perfect for anyone who's ever felt the agony of being a bi-cultural kid growing up in a society where labels and identity are everything.
Rating: Summary: W-O-W! Review: If you want to sneak a peek into the "Chicano" world. Or are a Chicano who wants to make sure your family is not the only one that is "that way." This is your book. The pages turn quickly and the laughs come just as fast.
Rating: Summary: Viva Michele Serros! Review: Michele Serros collection of 26 stories and poems about the Chicano/a experience living in Oxnard proves brilliant. Issues of language, gender, race, memory, and ethnic isolation are blended with irony, humor and wit through simple poetry that speaks volumes about the complexity of living in our Chicana/o pueblo/community. My favorite poems included "La Letty," "Tag Banger's Last Can," "Manos Morenas" and the excellent "Dead Pig's Revenge."This book is a homage to Serros' mother who passed on, leaving the artistic touch to her daughter. Thus, Chicana Falsa proves to be a testament to Serros' role as a torch bearer and carrier of excellent artistic and cultural contributions by brilliant Chicana escritoras. This book is an excellent read for students being introducted to Chicana/o literature. Students in high school and college will benefit either in creative writing courses, literature courses or women's studies courses. Este libro tiene la energia y fuerza que se requiere para contar nuestras vidas con honor, dignidad y memoria. Viva Michele! Gracias for this, your gift to us!
Rating: Summary: Chicana Falsa* is the Peotic def. of todays Hispanic Women Review: Michelle is an incredible writer with great insight on how it is to be a not so perfect Mexicana in a place where your heritage is the most defining thing about you. I was also born and raised in Oxnard, California and it was like reading a running diary of a friend who has shared similar experiences. It made me proud to see another Latina coming out of Chiques who made something of herself, and a writer no less. She and her writing are an inspiration to me and to the many other Latinas out there who are trying to figure themselves out with our heritage as the jumping point. This is the type of book you'll want to flip through from time to time when the study or work load gets too mundane and you want to come back to who you remember yourself as.
Rating: Summary: A Premature Publication Review: REALLY wanted to like this book and was excited when I bought it. Unfortunately, Serros' writing is not ready for publication. The writing could have been written by any mediocre student in any creative writing class, and this makes me realize how desperate publishers must be for writing by young Latinos, especially those who are not writing "barrio" literature. I am glad, for her sake, that Serros' book was published, but I am sad, also, that publishers are snatching manuscripts up without more attention to depth, unique voice, fresh ideas, and basic good writing. As Chicanas, we've got to raise our standards in terms of what we consider excellent writing. Let's look to good, classic models in literature and try to learn from that. Only then will we see Chicanas attaining the literary status of black writers like Toni Morrison or Alice Walker? Where is our Chicana Toni Morrison or Rita Dove???? If you are looking for quality writing by a young chicana, keep looking (and let me know if you find anything!)
Rating: Summary: Hilarious! Quick paced read! Review: This collection of poems and short stories was a super quick and easy read which would be ok for young teenagers. The writing in this collection is more sophisticated, however spare, and much more thought provoking than Serros' latest book, "How To Be A Chicana Role Model", which was just plain boring and predictable. Although this was a slim and light read, I would probably recommend it for teenagers going through the difficult identity years.
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