Yesterday at 7pm at the Village Community School: Listened with awe to Junot Diaz read from two of his major published works to date, “Drown” (1996, a collection of short stories) and “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao” (2007, novel). Diaz gives me hope that the structures and institutions that restrict, antagonize, and exclude can also be fertile ground for criticality, complexity, compassion, and good old common sense.
Impossible to speak for, or even summarize, the richness of Diaz’ thoughts. So here’s a 45-minute video of a reading/talk he gave in September 2007 at (sorry) Google. The Q&A after his reading is precious and liberating. (This clip is NOT a sound bite. It’s sustenance for your soul without religious or ideological pretense, so go grab a cup or glass of whatever and have a listen.)
Posted by blixity 
blixity 