The God of War by Marisa Silver

This is a definite recommended read. The God of War is a beautiful coming of age novel set in the late seventies as Ares Ramirez enters into his teen age years with a guilt that should not be suffered by any child. The path he takes leads him down the road of sexual identify, drugs and the straining relationship between a boy, his mentally challenged brother and a single mother who is trying her to raise her two boys into men the best way she knows how.

This story faces guilt that most children perceive responsible for, with no fault of their own, and how a child will internalize this pain and express it into anger and irresponsibility to himself, his family and to all others around them. Ares is no different and the path he takes leads him to an outcome that he himself never had expected to keep together a family, that at times felt to him ready to fall apart.

Please read. Purchase new and keep as a trophy to your library collection. The God of War is a masterpiece and should be shared with as much people as possible.

8 JAGS

In Hanuman’s Hands by Cheeni Rao

In Hanuman’s Hands is a poignant memoir of a young Indian man, Cheeni Rao, whose experience with American freedoms routed in the mark of passage of college life, leads him on the path of drugs and alcohol. A product of a devout Hindu family with lineage of privileged Brahmin priests, Rao is reduced to a homeless drug addict on the streets of Chicago, prostituting himself for his next fix and petty crime to quench his need for more drugs.

Excellent read.  Cheeni Rao’s account of self-destruction is a must for anyone who thinks that the first hit of a pipe or the snort of a line can not affect all walks of life. A cultural rich story of one man’s triumphant defeat of addiction and long road to recovery, this memoir gives the reader a new found respect for not only the strength of the human spirit, but also the beauty and complexity of Indian culture. 

The allure of the drug world and its integration with Indian culture in America’s homeland is rich and engrossing. Praise for Cheeni Rao strength and determination to defeat the destruction of addiction.

8 JAGS