Krik? Krak!

Rating:
Summary: Good Writer, Bittersweet Book
Review: OK, This book was assigned for me to read for my summer honors english reading. I hated the book. Edwige is a good writer, and she used excellent description in her stories, but if the reader is male, the book is horrible. The book is about generations of Haitian women in her family, and it has no appeal for a male. To me some of the stories were pointless and boring.

Rating:
Summary: A gorgeous series of intertwined Haitian folk-lore stories
Review: Oprah gave the magic dollar-bill creating stamp of approval on Breath, Eyes, Memory, but long before, was this lesser known brilliant book by a very young author, Edwidge Danticat. This is a superb collection that weaves together tales from different families in the same Haitian village. Read it with or without the Oprah approval--you won't be disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: Emotive peek of life in Haiti and Haitians in the US!
Review: Read the book. A review rearly comes close to describing the varying emotions in Danticat's "Krik? Krak!". It helps me transend into the backyards of homes in Haiti, as I listen to the conversations of the neighbors. It is so vivid it's sometimes difficult to read many pages in one sitting. You can see the soldiers forcing a son to rape his mother, the remains of a body at the side of the road, or the newly discovered sway of a young black woman after her discovery of her nakedness. This book is a truly great experience.

Rating:
Summary: Stirring the Heart with a Breeze
Review: Reading Danticat's splendid collection of stories gives you access to a world of people and places that you will grow to love. With tragic characters, subtle images of beauty and hope, and gestures that are never overdone, Danticat's writing accomplishes the greatest task of any short story writer; she lets you empathize with her characters and walk around in their shoes. These stories are good for the heart.

Rating:
Summary: Stories About Haitian(-Americans) During War-Torn Haiti
Review: The first thing that came to my mind while reading Edwidge Danticat's collection Krik? Krak! is that it is pure poetry. The first lines in "Children of the Sea", the first short story in the collection, are "They say behind the mountains are more mountains. Now I know it's true. I also know there are timeless waters, endless seas, and lots of people in this world whose names don't matter to anyone but themselves." The lyrical poetic style is consistent throughout all of Danticat's prose, which makes Krik? Krak! an easy and beautiful book to read despite the heavy issues addressed in each story within it. In Haiti a story-teller will say "Krik?" and anyone wishing to hear the story answers, "Krak!" and this is the basis for many of the stories Danticat writes.

And many important themes are dealt with in these deceptively simple stories. Most of them encompass three main issues: Poverty and hard times in Haiti, mother and daughter relationships and the self-awareness brought to each because of them, and the transition of immigrants. In Haiti a story-teller will say "Krik?" and anyone wishing to hear the story answers, "Krak!" and this is the basis for many of the stories Danticat writes. Although each story can be easily summarized, the underlying theme and unexpected conclusions reveal much more about life, especially a life of poverty and despair.

In "Children of the Sea", a young man on a ship from Haiti to the US writes letters to his girlfriend and Haiti and she writes letters to him, although they cannot send them to each other. In "Nineteen Thirty-Seven", a girl visits her mother, who is in prison for being accused of witch-craft. "A Wall of Fire Rising" is in interesting perception of poverty, in which a mother and afather trying to raise their young boy in a happy environment face insurmountable pressures. The central character in "Night Women" is a mother who works as a prostitute in order to support her son while in "Between the Pool and the Gardenias" it is a young sterile woman who greatly desires a child even among the poverty and distress so many young children face in Haiti. A young motherless girl befriends an American journalist during the war in Haiti in "The Missing Peacce" and another young girl is painted naked by a French artist in "Seeing Things Simply". A woman randomly sees her mother walking down the street in New York City in "New York Day Women" and realizes that she has a life unto herself, while in "Caroline's Wedding", the longest and last short story in the book, a daugther gets married to a man her mother disapproves of because he is not Haitian.

Perhaps the most poignant part of "Krik? Krak!" is the epilogue which reveals why Edwidge Danticat, the young author of the book, writes these stories. For her and many other women they represent an oral history passed down from mother to daughter, and from that daughter to her daughter and so on. Each short story in this book is an example of such a rich oral tradition and is a very convincing glimpse into the lives of some Haitians and Haitian-Americans. If you read Krik? Krak! and discover that you like it as much as I did, and are interested in more books dealing with a mother/daughter and/or immigration theme, I also recommend "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan, "Two Novellas: First Love and Look for my Obituary" by Elena Garro, "Our House in the Last World" by Oscar Hijuelos, and "White Oleander" by Janet Fitch. ...

Rating:
Summary: Stories About Haitian(-Americans) During War-Torn Haiti
Review: The first thing that came to my mind while reading Edwidge Danticat's collection Krik? Krak! is that it is pure poetry. The first lines in "Children of the Sea", the first short story in the collection, are "They say behind the mountains are more mountains. Now I know it's true. I also know there are timeless waters, endless seas, and lots of people in this world whose names don't matter to anyone but themselves." The lyrical poetic style is consistent throughout all of Danticat's prose, which makes Krik? Krak! an easy and beautiful book to read despite the heavy issues addressed in each story within it. In Haiti a story-teller will say "Krik?" and anyone wishing to hear the story answers, "Krak!" and this is the basis for many of the stories Danticat writes.

And many important themes are dealt with in these deceptively simple stories. Most of them encompass three main issues: Poverty and hard times in Haiti, mother and daughter relationships and the self-awareness brought to each because of them, and the transition of immigrants. In Haiti a story-teller will say "Krik?" and anyone wishing to hear the story answers, "Krak!" and this is the basis for many of the stories Danticat writes. Although each story can be easily summarized, the underlying theme and unexpected conclusions reveal much more about life, especially a life of poverty and despair.

In "Children of the Sea", a young man on a ship from Haiti to the US writes letters to his girlfriend and Haiti and she writes letters to him, although they cannot send them to each other. In "Nineteen Thirty-Seven", a girl visits her mother, who is in prison for being accused of witch-craft. "A Wall of Fire Rising" is in interesting perception of poverty, in which a mother and afather trying to raise their young boy in a happy environment face insurmountable pressures. The central character in "Night Women" is a mother who works as a prostitute in order to support her son while in "Between the Pool and the Gardenias" it is a young sterile woman who greatly desires a child even among the poverty and distress so many young children face in Haiti. A young motherless girl befriends an American journalist during the war in Haiti in "The Missing Peacce" and another young girl is painted naked by a French artist in "Seeing Things Simply". A woman randomly sees her mother walking down the street in New York City in "New York Day Women" and realizes that she has a life unto herself, while in "Caroline's Wedding", the longest and last short story in the book, a daugther gets married to a man her mother disapproves of because he is not Haitian.

Perhaps the most poignant part of "Krik? Krak!" is the epilogue which reveals why Edwidge Danticat, the young author of the book, writes these stories. For her and many other women they represent an oral history passed down from mother to daughter, and from that daughter to her daughter and so on. Each short story in this book is an example of such a rich oral tradition and is a very convincing glimpse into the lives of some Haitians and Haitian-Americans. If you read Krik? Krak! and discover that you like it as much as I did, and are interested in more books dealing with a mother/daughter and/or immigration theme, I also recommend "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan, "Two Novellas: First Love and Look for my Obituary" by Elena Garro, "Our House in the Last World" by Oscar Hijuelos, and "White Oleander" by Janet Fitch. ...

Rating:
Summary: Successful on two levels
Review: The stories in this collection succeed on two levels.

First, they transport you to a place you haven't been, the horror and terror of poverty-stricken Haiti.

Second, there is an arc to the collection as a whole. The stories taken together aren't as grim or horrifying as each one by itself. Together they tell of strength and perseverance in the face of difficulties and long odds.

Some of the stories are a little ragged, but the book in total is a riveting read.

Bill Chance

Rating:
Summary: Krik?Krak!
Review: This book is composed of short stories presented to us almost in the fashion of a poem. It tells of Hatian people,women in particular, who show outstanding resiliency to spirit bounding rulers and soilders. Women who continued to love after heart-break and kept the memory of one another alive through story-telling and imagination.Each story is a piece of anothers life, put together to combine a life-story that will last for many years to come. The result is a collection that saddens,angers, and enlightens the reader with its poetic beauty.


Rating:
Summary: A Haitian Perfection,Katanya Hall, Harry S Truman High Schoo
Review: this book tells of the hardship of Haitians and cruel way in which their dictator 'papa doc' Duvalier treated them. Women were left to die and rot in jail if they were suspected of practicing voodoo. The author tells of her transtion from haiti to america. It tells of the death of her father and the struggles of her parents in love and in finance. It tells of her sister caroline's handicap and her lifes ambition and her dreams. This is such a captivating book that i am compelled to read the entire collection by the author. Although the book consist of many differnt stories i realized that the book points to one theme and deals mainly with the life and expriences of the author.

Rating:
Summary: Krik? Krak!
Review: This collection of nine short stories was somewhat depressing to read. The stories of, for the most part, poverty stricken Haitian people were very intense and hard to believe. These stories show the amazing will power of these people despite the harsh oppression facing them. Danticat is a wonderful writer especially since she started at such a young age. Her different writing styles and technique make the reading very interesting and unique. She also uses a form of poetry that is very well done. I read a brief Haitian history after reading the book and this proved to be extremely helpful in a better understanding. Overall The writing was wonderful, but the stories a little intense.