An intimate memoir about finding closure, coupled with copious true-crime flourishes.
A veteran chronicles her postwar life in which she became an undercover law enforcement agent, started a family, and confronted hard truths of domestic violence.
In this direct follow-up to Torres’ debut memoir, Still Standing (2014), readers rejoin the Latina veteran of the first Iraq War after she returned stateside, working as a narcotics agent. Gone is the death wish that drove her into the military after a prom night rape; it’s replaced here with courage as she faced exciting opportunities in her new career. She presents a firsthand view of what it’s like to do undercover work as a woman, stripped of the fictions of movies and television—a no-nonsense account of buys-and-busts, prostitution stings, and a deep cover, Donnie Brasco–esque operation at a social club. Beneath it all is Torres’ continued emotional struggle as a rape survivor as she attempted to open up and cultivate healthy relationships. While vacationing in Cuba, she fell for Narciso, a charming native who soon came to the United States, where they married and had a daughter. Yet this happiness was short-lived: Narciso swung mercurially between being violent and apologetic, turning her home into a place that was more unpredictable than the crime-ridden streets. Torres excels at depicting this tension, and offers a remarkable, candid portrayal of a physically capable, emotionally intuitive woman who finds herself in an atmosphere of abuse. It’s difficult to discuss this book without referencing its predecessor, however, as it ties up many of Still Standing's loose ends—most importantly, the fact that Torres finally confronted the man who raped her. That trauma is less present in this volume; instead, she refers to it only in passing, which renders the book less powerful. Otherwise, though, this is an impeccably edited story about the long- and short-term effects of rape and abuse, told from an unusual perspective.
An intimate memoir about finding closure, coupled with copious true-crime flourishes.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 978-1-938812-51-4
Page Count: -
Publisher: Full Court Press
Review Posted Online: May 22, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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