What do you think?
Rate this book
Dogfight, A Love Story
What Jonathan Lethem did for Brooklyn, Matt Burgess does for Queens in this exuberant and brilliant debut novel about a young drug dealer having a very bad weekend.
Alfredo Batista has some worries. Okay, a lot of worries. His older brother, Jose—sorry, Tariq—is returning from a stretch in prison after an unsuccessful robbery, a burglary that Alfredo was supposed to be part of. So now everyone thinks Alfredo snitched on his brother, which may have something to do with the fact that Alfredo is now dating Tariq’s ex-girlfriend, Isabel, who is eight months pregnant. Tariq’s violent streak is probably the #1 worry on Alfredo’s list.
Also, he needs to steal a pit bull. For the homecoming dogfight.
Burgess brings to life the rich and vivid milieu of his hometown native Queens in all its glorious variety. Here is the real New York, a place where Pakistanis, Puerto Ricans, Haitians, Anglos, African Americans, and West Indians scrap and mingle and love. But the real star here is Burgess’s incredible ear for language—the voices of his characters leap off the page in riotous, spot-on dialogue. The outer boroughs have their own language, where a polite greeting is fraught with menace, and an insult can be the expression of the most tender love.
With a story as intricately plotted as a Shakespearean comedy—or revenge tragedy, for that matter—and an electrically colloquial prose style, Dogfight, a Love Story establishes Matt Burgess as an exuberant new voice in contemporary literature. The great Queens novel has arrived.
Alfredo Batista has some worries. Okay, a lot of worries. His older brother, Jose—sorry, Tariq—is returning from a stretch in prison after an unsuccessful robbery, a burglary that Alfredo was supposed to be part of. So now everyone thinks Alfredo snitched on his brother, which may have something to do with the fact that Alfredo is now dating Tariq’s ex-girlfriend, Isabel, who is eight months pregnant. Tariq’s violent streak is probably the #1 worry on Alfredo’s list.
Also, he needs to steal a pit bull. For the homecoming dogfight.
Burgess brings to life the rich and vivid milieu of his hometown native Queens in all its glorious variety. Here is the real New York, a place where Pakistanis, Puerto Ricans, Haitians, Anglos, African Americans, and West Indians scrap and mingle and love. But the real star here is Burgess’s incredible ear for language—the voices of his characters leap off the page in riotous, spot-on dialogue. The outer boroughs have their own language, where a polite greeting is fraught with menace, and an insult can be the expression of the most tender love.
With a story as intricately plotted as a Shakespearean comedy—or revenge tragedy, for that matter—and an electrically colloquial prose style, Dogfight, a Love Story establishes Matt Burgess as an exuberant new voice in contemporary literature. The great Queens novel has arrived.
- GenresFiction
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
13 people are currently reading
621 people want to read
About the author
Matt Burgess
10 books36 followersBefore graduating from Dartmouth College and the University of Minnesota’s MFA program, Matt Burgess grew up in Jackson Heights, Queens. His hometown has served as the location for both his first novel, Dogfight, A Love Story, which was a New York Times Editors’ Choice and Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick, and his second novel, Uncle Janice.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews
May 6, 2014
Great premise and the book started off with promise. Alfredo Batista, from Queens, NYC, is in a bit of a conundrum. Because although he is happy that his brother José is returning home from doing time upstate, he also has some major worries. One being that he has to figure out a way to get a pit bull for Jose's homecoming dogfight, and the other is that he's heard rumors his brother (who has converted to Islam while inside and changed his name to Tariq) might think that Alfredo is responsible for him getting locked up and is holding a grudge.
You get the sense that the author is trying to write his heart out in this novel as if this is the last book he'll ever write. Sometimes this earnestness produces great passages, but sometimes the writing seems a little masturbatory and distracting. Good try, but ultimately the book dwindled and I stopped caring.
You get the sense that the author is trying to write his heart out in this novel as if this is the last book he'll ever write. Sometimes this earnestness produces great passages, but sometimes the writing seems a little masturbatory and distracting. Good try, but ultimately the book dwindled and I stopped caring.
March 29, 2011
More like "A Like Story"
Dogfight, A Love Story by Matt Burgess, in my opinion was “OK.” I say that because, overall, I have mixed feelings about the novel. On one hand, I think “Matt Burgess is a great writer. He sure knows how to keep a reader’s attention.” Then on the other hand, I think “Can I have a better story, please?” The story has potential. I just believe it needs to be rewritten. With that it often comes off to me as a homage. A homage to many things. I ‘m not quite sure if that was what Burgess intended. I was just hoping for something that I’m not as used to that’s all. Even though I got the homage vibes, I could respect his admiration for something I’m interested in as well: Latino culture.
As far as Burgess writing style is concerned, he is a breath of fresh air. That’s the element I felt often throughout his novel. In this aspect, there’s really not a point where I wanted to truly put the book down. His choice of words and their structure helped to keep me alert and on my toes, which often outweighed my previous story complaint. There was an element of believability that Burgess also seemed to perfect. Such as that he used real places and settings throughout his novel. He had his main character say things like bodega, instead of just corner store. And, the fact that he mentioned a myriad of different heritages or cultures to represent the melting pot that Queens is. It was as if Alfredo, Winston, Vladimir, and everybody else could be real people. And, that’s something that I admired.
However, despite the fresh writing style or believability of Burgess’ work, I still come up short in my overall appreciation story wise. I feel that the novel started off nicely and even continued that way once Tariq was released from prison, however, it wasn’t until the dogfight or better yet right before the dogfight started that I began to truly get bored. The novel had been working up to that point from nearly the beginning and then when it got there it’s like “eh”, it’s boring, and drawn out. Overly drawn out. It got better, however, when everything bubbled over the surface with Alfredo, Tariq, and Misha. But then once that bit of the story was out of the way it seemed to do a more significant nosedive than before. Yes, it was the falling action and resolution of the story, but I felt a little left up in the air with the outcome of everything. So these parts, I believe, are the biggest concern when it comes to the idea of revision.
All in all, I give Dogfight, A Love Story a 3 out of 5. It was ok, maybe even good considering it’s Matt Burgess’ debut novel. He’s a great writer with style and has the potential to be a great storyteller. I’m genuinely interested to hopefully read his future stories that he transforms into novels.
August 21, 2020
This one is written by the brother of a girlfriend of a friend of mine. That’s distant enough that I doubt I’ll ever meet the guy, but it does give me a sense that I could someday find myself in conversation with him. That’s enough to incline me toward this without biasing me in its favor.
And the truth is, I don’t need much biasing here. This has all sorts of ingredients I am prepped to love. Our protagonist is Alfredo, a generally sweet kid who just happens to sell a few drugs and beat up the occasional person. And, oh yeah, determine to arrange an underground dog fight where – if all goes according to the eventual plan – he’ll turn his newly paroled brother back into the police and double-cross everyone in the neighborhood on bets.
But it’s hard to hold larceny like that against a kid who seems the only one in his world capable of real love. He didn’t mean to court Isabel – she was his newly jailed brother’s girlfriend – but it just sort of happened. And he turns out, objectively, to be a much better boyfriend. He cares about her, looks after her. Even, stunningly, listens to her as a partner and fellow human. It’s easy to see why she prefers him to Tariq; for all of his innate screw-up qualities, he’s trying to be a good man.
I don’t think the version of Queens that we get here actually exists, but that’s OK with me. Instead, it’s a multi-ethnic fantasy where Latinos, African-Americans, Jews, and the occasional nondescript white cops all mingle. Everyone is after an edge of some kind, so everyone sort of tolerates everyone else as a way of making personal peace.
There’s a large shot of nostalgia shot things. Max Marshmallow is an old Jewish guy who’s bought a bodega, left it more or less the same, but insisted on calling it a “candy shop” after the institutions of his late 1950s youth. Mike Schiffren, a Russian immigrant and likely Jewish kid, has set up as the local drug lord, but he’s only mid-level. The cops range from lazily to mildly corrupt, but they have their ambition within the force. Everyone’s scrambling for a chance at something. Like the most compelling cities, whether naked or partly clothed, there are stories everywhere.
The good news is that Burgess generally tells those stories well. It may be a bit much to find that everything happens in the space of a day or so, but everything moves along easily and cleverly. Burgess is a strong, literate writer, and he fills us in with what we need as he goes along.
I get a little tired of some of the narrative gimmicks, though. Alfredo’s inner monologue is often colored by the metaphor of his private file cabinet of memories, hopes, and grievances. Isabel often finds herself in deep conversation with her unborn child. Tariq is always trying to determine what “the book” – the Koran – would tell him to do. While I like the characters, the tropes got old.
There’s also a strange and possibly clumsy afterword here, a final chapter that picks things up more than a year later and shows us Alfredo and Isabel in their new lives. It seems an acknowledgement that the first part ended without quite wrapping things up, but then it also seems to suggest we’ll get a full sequel.
Those are small points in the larger structure of a book that I mostly enjoyed. This may be dated now; a decade after Burgess wrote it, he’d likely find much less tolerance for the implicit cultural appropriation here. That saddens me some, though. This is ultimately a generous-spirited book, and I think it’s fantasy of different peoples coming into conflict is something work exploring.
The blurbs compare this work to Jonathan Lethem (one of my favorites) but I don’t quite see that. Instead, I think it’s more a next-generation Elmore Leonard – a book that fits real and feeling characters into a world so saturated with irony that they become all more memorable and poignant.
And the truth is, I don’t need much biasing here. This has all sorts of ingredients I am prepped to love. Our protagonist is Alfredo, a generally sweet kid who just happens to sell a few drugs and beat up the occasional person. And, oh yeah, determine to arrange an underground dog fight where – if all goes according to the eventual plan – he’ll turn his newly paroled brother back into the police and double-cross everyone in the neighborhood on bets.
But it’s hard to hold larceny like that against a kid who seems the only one in his world capable of real love. He didn’t mean to court Isabel – she was his newly jailed brother’s girlfriend – but it just sort of happened. And he turns out, objectively, to be a much better boyfriend. He cares about her, looks after her. Even, stunningly, listens to her as a partner and fellow human. It’s easy to see why she prefers him to Tariq; for all of his innate screw-up qualities, he’s trying to be a good man.
I don’t think the version of Queens that we get here actually exists, but that’s OK with me. Instead, it’s a multi-ethnic fantasy where Latinos, African-Americans, Jews, and the occasional nondescript white cops all mingle. Everyone is after an edge of some kind, so everyone sort of tolerates everyone else as a way of making personal peace.
There’s a large shot of nostalgia shot things. Max Marshmallow is an old Jewish guy who’s bought a bodega, left it more or less the same, but insisted on calling it a “candy shop” after the institutions of his late 1950s youth. Mike Schiffren, a Russian immigrant and likely Jewish kid, has set up as the local drug lord, but he’s only mid-level. The cops range from lazily to mildly corrupt, but they have their ambition within the force. Everyone’s scrambling for a chance at something. Like the most compelling cities, whether naked or partly clothed, there are stories everywhere.
The good news is that Burgess generally tells those stories well. It may be a bit much to find that everything happens in the space of a day or so, but everything moves along easily and cleverly. Burgess is a strong, literate writer, and he fills us in with what we need as he goes along.
I get a little tired of some of the narrative gimmicks, though. Alfredo’s inner monologue is often colored by the metaphor of his private file cabinet of memories, hopes, and grievances. Isabel often finds herself in deep conversation with her unborn child. Tariq is always trying to determine what “the book” – the Koran – would tell him to do. While I like the characters, the tropes got old.
There’s also a strange and possibly clumsy afterword here, a final chapter that picks things up more than a year later and shows us Alfredo and Isabel in their new lives. It seems an acknowledgement that the first part ended without quite wrapping things up, but then it also seems to suggest we’ll get a full sequel.
Those are small points in the larger structure of a book that I mostly enjoyed. This may be dated now; a decade after Burgess wrote it, he’d likely find much less tolerance for the implicit cultural appropriation here. That saddens me some, though. This is ultimately a generous-spirited book, and I think it’s fantasy of different peoples coming into conflict is something work exploring.
The blurbs compare this work to Jonathan Lethem (one of my favorites) but I don’t quite see that. Instead, I think it’s more a next-generation Elmore Leonard – a book that fits real and feeling characters into a world so saturated with irony that they become all more memorable and poignant.
November 17, 2019
Burgess nimmt uns in diesem Buch mit nach Queens, in die Viertel, in der Armut herrscht. Es ist ein trauriges Bild einer Grossstadt, das hier gezeichnet wird. Wir werden mit Drogen konfrontiert, zerbrochenen Lebensträumen und Teufelsspiralen. Dennoch gibt es Hoffnung und für manche auch einen Ausweg.
Trotzdem hat mir auch dieses Buch vor Augen geführt, wie gut es mir eigentlich geht. Ich bin versichert, kann meine Rechnungen zahlen und habe eine gesunde Beziehung. All dies ist keine Selbstverständlichkeit!
Trotzdem hat mir auch dieses Buch vor Augen geführt, wie gut es mir eigentlich geht. Ich bin versichert, kann meine Rechnungen zahlen und habe eine gesunde Beziehung. All dies ist keine Selbstverständlichkeit!
August 10, 2020
Just reread this a decade after I first came across it, and wow, does it still pack a punch. The story takes place across two days in 2002, covering the scrambling schemes of 19-year-old Puerto Rican-American hustler Alfredo preparing for his brother to come home from prison. This involves both the buildup to a DIY dogfight he's staged in a bodega basement as a welcome home celebration and the fact that Alfredo's pregnant girlfriend used to go out with his brother. The story's got the ticking clock frenetic energy of the David Benioff Manhattan-set book (and Spike Lee film) The 25th Hour, or the recent Safdie Brothers Queens-set film Good Times.
Beyond the principal characters (Alfredo, his girlfriend Isabel, his brother Jose Jr./aka Tariq, his parents, and his buddy Winston), there is a vivid ensemble of a supporting cast, including the elderly Jewish bodega-owner Max, a chorus of ball-busting undercover cops (shades of Richard Price), various neighborhood hoodlums, and a teenage Russian dope-peddler. However, Queens itself -- or more specifically, Jackson Heights and Corona -- is the other main character. It just pops off the page as a distinctively living and breathing place, and based on all the reviews I've seen from people who live there, it's an entirely authentic representation both in terms of physical landmarks and the psychogeography.
For a relatively short book and compressed time-frame, there's so much packed in here. Sibling rivalry and love, father-son relations, teenage love, small-time drug trade (which is accurately shown to be not a particularly lucrative job), the legacy of sexual abuse, stop-and-frisk policing, economic fragility and dead-end prospects, immigration, and the power of place. This is all brought to life with rat-a-rat writing that is flexible, fun, and full of heart.
Beyond the principal characters (Alfredo, his girlfriend Isabel, his brother Jose Jr./aka Tariq, his parents, and his buddy Winston), there is a vivid ensemble of a supporting cast, including the elderly Jewish bodega-owner Max, a chorus of ball-busting undercover cops (shades of Richard Price), various neighborhood hoodlums, and a teenage Russian dope-peddler. However, Queens itself -- or more specifically, Jackson Heights and Corona -- is the other main character. It just pops off the page as a distinctively living and breathing place, and based on all the reviews I've seen from people who live there, it's an entirely authentic representation both in terms of physical landmarks and the psychogeography.
For a relatively short book and compressed time-frame, there's so much packed in here. Sibling rivalry and love, father-son relations, teenage love, small-time drug trade (which is accurately shown to be not a particularly lucrative job), the legacy of sexual abuse, stop-and-frisk policing, economic fragility and dead-end prospects, immigration, and the power of place. This is all brought to life with rat-a-rat writing that is flexible, fun, and full of heart.
August 30, 2010
This is advertised as the first real Queens Novel, set in that Borough with its large immigrant population coexisting side by side, imparting an international alphabet soup quality to the story and the characters. Nobody writes so well about New York as her inhabitants, and Burgess is a welcome addition to this group. Yes, Jonathan Letham writes knowingly and lovingly about Brooklyn, but this novel seems to owe as much to Richard Price's Lush Life as to anything else, or any of Pete Hammill's evocative paeans to the entire City. So that is what I mean when I say this is not the usual love story even if it does have love between a man and a woman, brothers and brothers, mothers and fathers and children -- they are all somewhat in love with their City, with their Borough, and are doing what they can to survive and possibly change their relationships with her rather than having to leave. Decisions are not made easily and often are unwise. But by giving more characters inner lives and depths, Burgess expresses his deep held affection for his venue, warts and all.
November 14, 2014
This guy really nails Queens.
January 4, 2026
Two main things I loved about this book:
1) the voice, which is so distinct and never falters
2) the way the author propels the story forward so creatively
I’ve never read anything like this, and I suspect the only way I ever will again is if I read more of Burgess’s work. To come out with a debut novel with such a rich and, more importantly, authentic style, is a triumph in itself.
One small critique: I felt that while some of the interiority of the characters was brilliantly done and added necessary depth to the characters, some of it dragged on too long, to the point where I even lost focus on the story, which had plenty of potential for momentum without losing the careful pacing.
Still, this was so fun to read: a vivid, realistic, hilarious, and honest portrayal of a specific time, with which I am intimately familiar, and place, with which I am not familiar, but which I fully inhabited while reading this novel.
1) the voice, which is so distinct and never falters
2) the way the author propels the story forward so creatively
I’ve never read anything like this, and I suspect the only way I ever will again is if I read more of Burgess’s work. To come out with a debut novel with such a rich and, more importantly, authentic style, is a triumph in itself.
One small critique: I felt that while some of the interiority of the characters was brilliantly done and added necessary depth to the characters, some of it dragged on too long, to the point where I even lost focus on the story, which had plenty of potential for momentum without losing the careful pacing.
Still, this was so fun to read: a vivid, realistic, hilarious, and honest portrayal of a specific time, with which I am intimately familiar, and place, with which I am not familiar, but which I fully inhabited while reading this novel.
February 12, 2024
A wild ride of a novel that had a lot of bumps through the journey. I liked how flawed yet redeemable most of the characters were and how they all collided with each other. You felt the flow and chaotic order of the setting of Queens NY. The author made a great story about a struggling drug dealer and his bizarre family and rising tensions amongst characters. My one displeasure with this book was how short and abrupt it is. Some tertiary characters don't have any resolution, so I am getting through the last pages wondering what happened to them and displeased that I will never know. This also felt like it could have been a part one of a longer story. Unfortunately, the author has only one other novel with a different set of characters and no upcoming works of fiction. It's sad because this was a fun read, just a bit limited.
March 4, 2019
Brutal Truths
The story has the happiest ending possible for such addled and entangled characters. Drugs, jail, jealous brothers, unreliable pals, grouchy & aging parents, opposing drug gangs... Add a poorly conceived dog fight and what could go wrong?
The story is told in excruciating detail yet somehow I hoped to be surprised & rewarded at the end for having slugged my way through. I was disappointed, partly because I didn't get the point of the miserable lives these characters go through.
Maybe it's just a cautionary tale. It worked for me. I'm very sure I'm not going to deal drugs on the streets of NYC. It's too rough. Even if you escape the drug scene, life is just Tough.
The story has the happiest ending possible for such addled and entangled characters. Drugs, jail, jealous brothers, unreliable pals, grouchy & aging parents, opposing drug gangs... Add a poorly conceived dog fight and what could go wrong?
The story is told in excruciating detail yet somehow I hoped to be surprised & rewarded at the end for having slugged my way through. I was disappointed, partly because I didn't get the point of the miserable lives these characters go through.
Maybe it's just a cautionary tale. It worked for me. I'm very sure I'm not going to deal drugs on the streets of NYC. It's too rough. Even if you escape the drug scene, life is just Tough.
December 31, 2025
2.5/5
Quotes:
“”You wanna hear something? My girlfriend—she’s eight months pregnant, okay?” She is, of course, only seven months pregnant, but Alfredo tells meaningless lies to stay in practice.” (37)
“He expected the kid to be shitting in his socks by now, but then—with unexpected and considerable disappointment—Tariq remembers that Winston’s on drugs. Anti-anxieties, probably. Xanax, or something like it. See, that’s the problem with these kids. Anxiety can be useful. Slowing down can be effective. Pay attention. Take your time.” (123)
“Alfredo recites the Lord’s Prayer. He gets halfway through before stopping at daily bread. He does not ask to be forgiven. Why bother? Alfredo’s hunger for forgiveness exceeds the world’s capacity to dole it out.” (266)
Quotes:
“”You wanna hear something? My girlfriend—she’s eight months pregnant, okay?” She is, of course, only seven months pregnant, but Alfredo tells meaningless lies to stay in practice.” (37)
“He expected the kid to be shitting in his socks by now, but then—with unexpected and considerable disappointment—Tariq remembers that Winston’s on drugs. Anti-anxieties, probably. Xanax, or something like it. See, that’s the problem with these kids. Anxiety can be useful. Slowing down can be effective. Pay attention. Take your time.” (123)
“Alfredo recites the Lord’s Prayer. He gets halfway through before stopping at daily bread. He does not ask to be forgiven. Why bother? Alfredo’s hunger for forgiveness exceeds the world’s capacity to dole it out.” (266)
November 4, 2019
Comparing this to Lethem and his portrayals of Brooklyn leaves me uninterested in visiting Queens. It is probably not fair to say that, but I felt the plot never really got fully in flight. I have a friend who swears that Jackson Heights, where parts of the novel are set is the Cat's Meow. Maybe. Several stories going on at one time and they are nicely resolved by the end. A side of life in America that I will never experience, so it is good to read about it and I would think that it is an accurate representation of the borough in its diversity. A good thing in this age of Trump. For a debut novel, Burgess did a decent job.
February 16, 2018
Dogfight, A Love Story is an interestingly-told, focused story with characters the author clearly cares about. Burgess gives his characters unique and empathetic voices, as well as endearing and, at times, unsettling traits that engender both affection and dismay in the reader, which, I think, are both emotions a writer would like evoked in his/her audience. Burgess slightly loses track of his plot in focusing more closely on how it affects the two main characters, leaving one too many loose ends for my liking, but overall, it is well-written and very much a New York story. 3.5 stars.
February 3, 2021
Fantastic book. A mix between George Pelecanos and Richard Price. Set in 2002, perfectly captures the feelings after 9/11. Alfredo Batista is a drug dealer awaiting his brothers return from prison with rumors that he’s the reason he got sent there. Don’t want to give anything else away, but the dialogue is great and feels like you’re on the streets of New York following drug dealers around. Highly recommended.
June 29, 2018
This is my favorite book I've ever read. The vivid imagery, the unique and well-detailed characters, the intense atmosphere, and most of all the humor make this one of the most enjoyable, memorable, and worthwhile reads.
July 16, 2017
What an unusual but captivating story.
January 5, 2022
Its poverty, its young love, it's real.
January 3, 2023
i told matt it felt like getting punched in the face in a good a way and he said it was a dream come true to punch me in the face
February 2, 2011
Matt Burgess's debut novel, Dogfight, A Love Story (published last September), is a helluva first novel. It takes place over the course of a single weekend in Jackson Heights, Queens, in the summer of 2002. While the plot isn't overly complex or complicated, though it is well crafted, a lot happens in this novel. I'll leave off giving a complete plot summary (I probably couldn't do it justice), but it involves nineteen year-old Alfredo Bautista, a small-time independent drug dealer. Alfredo is awaiting his brother Tariq's release from prison, and there are rumors that Alfredo had something to do with Tariq's getting caught in a botched robbery. But that's not all: Alfredo's seven-months-pregnant girlfriend, Isabel, was Tariq's girlfriend when he went into prison, and he's not sure how Tariq is going to handle the news. According to the rules of the street, Alfredo must also present Tariq with a "package" upon his release. It's in Alfredo's acquiring of the "package" - a hollowed out beeper full of Ecstasy - that the plot of the novel really begins to move. Alfredo, on suspect information from his friend, Winston, jacks the drugs from who he thinks is just a skinny Russian kid outside an all-boys Catholic school. Guess what? The skinny Russian kid isn't just some kid: he's connected. Though this isn't the only plot line, the central thrust of the novel begins here.
A couple things about this novel: first, don't let the subtitle "A Love Story" turn you away from this novel. Really, it's as much a love story between two brothers as it is a love story between the characters and Jackson Heights, Queens. Second, this is clearly a New York novel, and I'm sure there are things I missed, but I never felt like I didn't belong, like the novel wasn't for people outside of New York. That said, it strikes me as the kind of book that people in Queens will read and say, "Hey, I know exactly where that street corner/bodega/building/etc. is." I'm always drawn to novels of place, even if it is a place I've never been or can't easily identify with.
The language in Dogfight is superb. The dialog, to my ear, is pitch perfect, and the descriptions are gritty and real. The novel is in the third person, but Burgess seemingly effortlessly moves between multiple characters and each has their own "voice." That's hard to pull off.
Also, although the situations surrounding the characters are deadly serious, the novel is funny. Alfredo is having one terrible weekend and it's hard not laugh at some of the things that happen. This may not be the best example, but the mix of violence and humor are reminiscent of a movie like Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, or even to a certain extent Burn After Reading.
Speaking of the violence, it's handled as well as everything else in the novel. There is a particularly violent dogfight (given the title, there has to be, right?), but I didn't feel it was gratuitous in any way.
Any gripes I have about the novel are minor. Tariq's actions building up to and including the climax of the novel are a bit hard to swallow. What he does isn't implausible, but it felt too far out of character for him. The pacing of the novel is excellent, so anytime there is a scene that slows down, it's more noticeable. It's interesting to see how Burgess wraps everything up for the climax. I'm not saying I don't like it - I do - but I'd like to hear what others think.
All in all, this novel makes Matt Burgess a writer to watch. I'm looking forward to what he does next.
For more, check out my blog: http://thestoryisthecure.blogspot.com/
A couple things about this novel: first, don't let the subtitle "A Love Story" turn you away from this novel. Really, it's as much a love story between two brothers as it is a love story between the characters and Jackson Heights, Queens. Second, this is clearly a New York novel, and I'm sure there are things I missed, but I never felt like I didn't belong, like the novel wasn't for people outside of New York. That said, it strikes me as the kind of book that people in Queens will read and say, "Hey, I know exactly where that street corner/bodega/building/etc. is." I'm always drawn to novels of place, even if it is a place I've never been or can't easily identify with.
The language in Dogfight is superb. The dialog, to my ear, is pitch perfect, and the descriptions are gritty and real. The novel is in the third person, but Burgess seemingly effortlessly moves between multiple characters and each has their own "voice." That's hard to pull off.
Also, although the situations surrounding the characters are deadly serious, the novel is funny. Alfredo is having one terrible weekend and it's hard not laugh at some of the things that happen. This may not be the best example, but the mix of violence and humor are reminiscent of a movie like Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, or even to a certain extent Burn After Reading.
Speaking of the violence, it's handled as well as everything else in the novel. There is a particularly violent dogfight (given the title, there has to be, right?), but I didn't feel it was gratuitous in any way.
Any gripes I have about the novel are minor. Tariq's actions building up to and including the climax of the novel are a bit hard to swallow. What he does isn't implausible, but it felt too far out of character for him. The pacing of the novel is excellent, so anytime there is a scene that slows down, it's more noticeable. It's interesting to see how Burgess wraps everything up for the climax. I'm not saying I don't like it - I do - but I'd like to hear what others think.
All in all, this novel makes Matt Burgess a writer to watch. I'm looking forward to what he does next.
For more, check out my blog: http://thestoryisthecure.blogspot.com/
July 5, 2011
It seems as though I’ve fallen into a cycle of reading very well written books that offer up only mildly interesting stories in exchange for the time I’ve spent consuming them. Dogfight isn’t horrible by any stretch, as a matter of fact, the first third of the book is surprisingly wonderful, but after that it quickly tapers off and becomes something far less enjoyable. Add to the mix an ending that feels tacked on and unbelievable given the first three hundred pages and what you’re left with is sadly a bit of a disappointment.
Author Matt Burgess possesses talent, there’s no question there. The way he introduces readers to the story’s central protagonist, a low-level drug dealer named Alfredo, is brilliant:
In the middle of Alfredo Batista’s brain there is a tall gray filing cabinet, frequently opened. The drawers are deep, the folders fattened with a lifetime of regrettable moments. There is, tucked away toward the back, a list of women whose phone numbers he never asked for. There are the debts accrued. In the bottom drawer, in separate folders, there are the things he never learned to do: drive an automobile, throw a knuckleball, tie a knot in a cherry stem using only his tongue. What else? In the top drawer, there is a file recounting the evening he left the Mets game early, thinking the run deficit insurmountable. There is the why-didn’t-I-wear-a-condom folder. There is—this one’s surprisingly thin—the crimes-against-my-brother folder. Alfredo is only nineteen years old, and already his cabinet overflows with files, none of them collecting dust, each one routinely inspected. All it takes is a random word, a face in passing, and a memory blooms, a cabinet drawer slides open. An intracranial research librarian—Alfredo imagines him bespectacled, with frayed pant cuffs and dandruff on his shoulders— waddles over to the open drawer, plucks out the appropriate file, and passes it on to the brain’s well-staffed and efficiently run Department of Regret. Here, unable to help himself, Alfredo scrutinizes the folder. He re-creates the event’s sensory details. He goes over, with sick and meticulous precision, exactly what was said and, of course, what was not said. He relinks the chain of events.
READ MORE:
http://www.typographicalera.com/dogfi...
Author Matt Burgess possesses talent, there’s no question there. The way he introduces readers to the story’s central protagonist, a low-level drug dealer named Alfredo, is brilliant:
In the middle of Alfredo Batista’s brain there is a tall gray filing cabinet, frequently opened. The drawers are deep, the folders fattened with a lifetime of regrettable moments. There is, tucked away toward the back, a list of women whose phone numbers he never asked for. There are the debts accrued. In the bottom drawer, in separate folders, there are the things he never learned to do: drive an automobile, throw a knuckleball, tie a knot in a cherry stem using only his tongue. What else? In the top drawer, there is a file recounting the evening he left the Mets game early, thinking the run deficit insurmountable. There is the why-didn’t-I-wear-a-condom folder. There is—this one’s surprisingly thin—the crimes-against-my-brother folder. Alfredo is only nineteen years old, and already his cabinet overflows with files, none of them collecting dust, each one routinely inspected. All it takes is a random word, a face in passing, and a memory blooms, a cabinet drawer slides open. An intracranial research librarian—Alfredo imagines him bespectacled, with frayed pant cuffs and dandruff on his shoulders— waddles over to the open drawer, plucks out the appropriate file, and passes it on to the brain’s well-staffed and efficiently run Department of Regret. Here, unable to help himself, Alfredo scrutinizes the folder. He re-creates the event’s sensory details. He goes over, with sick and meticulous precision, exactly what was said and, of course, what was not said. He relinks the chain of events.
READ MORE:
http://www.typographicalera.com/dogfi...
December 21, 2012
I can imagine literary critics everywhere gushing and blubbering as they turn the pages of this book because, quite frankly, I hated it. I was hoping for an entertaining crime novel with some humor between its pages, and got mired in a literary snoozefest instead. I’m sure there are readers out there who love this sort of thing, but I’m not one of them.
Alfredo Batista is worried, now that his brother Jose Jr., who renamed himself Tariq after he turned Muslim in prison, is coming home. Rumors have abounded through their Queens neighborhood that Alfredo sold out his brother, but that isn’t Alfredo’s greatest concern. His apprehension arises out of the fact that he stole his brother’s girlfriend and got her pregnant, and since she’s eight months along, there’s no hiding it. In order to appease Tariq, Alfredo decides to get hold of some Ecstasy and host a dog fight in his honor.
Unfortunately, the drug dealer he steals from and injures has some nasty connections, and now Alfredo has something else to worry about, not to mention his difficulties in obtaining a dog for the fight.
The story plods along, following every single stray thought of the characters, as Alfredo worries about everything, his girlfriend Isabel worries about her unborn baby and what Tariq will do, and everyone else whose point of view is highlighted simply has wandering thoughts. A story that took place over just a couple of days felt like it dragged out over years, or maybe that was just because I had to force myself to read it.
I’m sure somewhere in this massive pile of useless internal ramblings there was something that I was supposed to find touching, but I didn’t feel it. I disliked every last one of the characters and felt no sympathy toward any of them. Tariq was a predator, Alfredo an idiot, and Isabel weak. And this story simply dragged on so slowly, it was torture. It’s safe to say I won’t be looking for any more gems from this author, because this book was just not my cup of tea.
Alfredo Batista is worried, now that his brother Jose Jr., who renamed himself Tariq after he turned Muslim in prison, is coming home. Rumors have abounded through their Queens neighborhood that Alfredo sold out his brother, but that isn’t Alfredo’s greatest concern. His apprehension arises out of the fact that he stole his brother’s girlfriend and got her pregnant, and since she’s eight months along, there’s no hiding it. In order to appease Tariq, Alfredo decides to get hold of some Ecstasy and host a dog fight in his honor.
Unfortunately, the drug dealer he steals from and injures has some nasty connections, and now Alfredo has something else to worry about, not to mention his difficulties in obtaining a dog for the fight.
The story plods along, following every single stray thought of the characters, as Alfredo worries about everything, his girlfriend Isabel worries about her unborn baby and what Tariq will do, and everyone else whose point of view is highlighted simply has wandering thoughts. A story that took place over just a couple of days felt like it dragged out over years, or maybe that was just because I had to force myself to read it.
I’m sure somewhere in this massive pile of useless internal ramblings there was something that I was supposed to find touching, but I didn’t feel it. I disliked every last one of the characters and felt no sympathy toward any of them. Tariq was a predator, Alfredo an idiot, and Isabel weak. And this story simply dragged on so slowly, it was torture. It’s safe to say I won’t be looking for any more gems from this author, because this book was just not my cup of tea.
October 24, 2010
I pre-ordered this book because it was written by a friend, and I wanted to support his work. Although I didn't know what to expect, I know that I did not expect to be totally blown away by Burgess's talent. The fast-paced, cleverly-plotted novel is told in the visceral and vivid present tense by an at-first disjunctive-but-ultimately-appropriate third-person limited (and at times omniscient, if that's possible) narrator. While the plot takes place in Queens, the outer borough is less a backdrop than a character, and gives the novel much of its character. The rest of the character is fleshed out by the novel's protagonist, Alfredo Batista, a young Puerto-Rican small-time drug-dealer, whose sincerity of expression far outweighs the fact that he's a rather weak-kneed ne'er-do-well.
The plot is driven by Alfredo's attempts to "welcome" back home his hardened and terrifying older brother, Jose--or "Tariq"--, after a stint in jail for a crime that Alfredo was supposed to help commit. During Jose/Tariq's two-year absence, Alredo managed to fall in love with J/T's girlfriend, Isabella, get her pregnant, and get her moved into his parent's apartment. As he nervously awaits his brother's release and eventual retribution, he works to first steal a package of drugs for Tariq and then to set up a dogfight in his honor as a mea culpa. Alfredo is lucky, but he isn't that lucky, and his plans definitely go awry.
As many of the reviews have already remarked, Burgess's language is a delight--he is exceptionally attuned to communicating his characters' vulnerability in the street vernacular that makes those characters feel so real. At times, I felt so worried for Alfredo that I slowed down my reading to save him from what I feared was his doom. I highly recommend picking up this book: although it has "movie deal" written all over it, its characters--especially Alfredo and Isabella--deserve to be read.
The plot is driven by Alfredo's attempts to "welcome" back home his hardened and terrifying older brother, Jose--or "Tariq"--, after a stint in jail for a crime that Alfredo was supposed to help commit. During Jose/Tariq's two-year absence, Alredo managed to fall in love with J/T's girlfriend, Isabella, get her pregnant, and get her moved into his parent's apartment. As he nervously awaits his brother's release and eventual retribution, he works to first steal a package of drugs for Tariq and then to set up a dogfight in his honor as a mea culpa. Alfredo is lucky, but he isn't that lucky, and his plans definitely go awry.
As many of the reviews have already remarked, Burgess's language is a delight--he is exceptionally attuned to communicating his characters' vulnerability in the street vernacular that makes those characters feel so real. At times, I felt so worried for Alfredo that I slowed down my reading to save him from what I feared was his doom. I highly recommend picking up this book: although it has "movie deal" written all over it, its characters--especially Alfredo and Isabella--deserve to be read.
April 24, 2011
Matt Burgess nails his first novel, this book is great. While he plays up stereotypes and cliches, he does it in a creative way and with an electric story. Dogfight, a Love Story is reminiscent of the Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - it has a Latin flavor, with vulgar undertones, and a look into the streets of Queens. Burgess is witty, clever, and has a unique writing style. I read this book in a weekend, I was wrapped up in the characters and the story and really had no idea how it would end. Some of the story feels realistic, some of it a little far-fetched, but overall, I loved it.
Alfredo has knocked up Isabel, his older brother's ex-girlfriend while the brother is serving time in Fishkill's prison. The story takes place over a couple of days: the brother is getting released from prison and Alfredo, Isabel, and the rest of the Batista family is anxiously anticipating his arrival. Alfredo, both eager to impress his older brother and protect his turf and girlfriend, is scheming to find a way to show older brother Jose that he has grown up. His plot ends him up in trouble, fearful for his life and that of his best friend.
The cast of characters is great:
The best friend, Winston, is a hysterical character: an overweight, doofy, drug-addicted, Haitian with alopecia who frequently sports a Spiderman hat.
Mother Batista is a classic boriquena: she cleans nonstop and believes that a spotless home will cure her family of any troubles. Their home is decorated with the stereotypical parrots, she cooks stereotypical habichuelas, and has sofrito ice cubes in the freezer.
Jose Batista, Sr. is a paraplegic hooked on the lotto and infomercials.
Isabel, 7 months pregnant and living with the Batistas is a people-pleaser with a sad past. She hears her baby (in utero), Christian Louis, constantly guiding her and singing lullabies.
I don't want to say anymore because I feel it would spoil the ending.
Alfredo has knocked up Isabel, his older brother's ex-girlfriend while the brother is serving time in Fishkill's prison. The story takes place over a couple of days: the brother is getting released from prison and Alfredo, Isabel, and the rest of the Batista family is anxiously anticipating his arrival. Alfredo, both eager to impress his older brother and protect his turf and girlfriend, is scheming to find a way to show older brother Jose that he has grown up. His plot ends him up in trouble, fearful for his life and that of his best friend.
The cast of characters is great:
The best friend, Winston, is a hysterical character: an overweight, doofy, drug-addicted, Haitian with alopecia who frequently sports a Spiderman hat.
Mother Batista is a classic boriquena: she cleans nonstop and believes that a spotless home will cure her family of any troubles. Their home is decorated with the stereotypical parrots, she cooks stereotypical habichuelas, and has sofrito ice cubes in the freezer.
Jose Batista, Sr. is a paraplegic hooked on the lotto and infomercials.
Isabel, 7 months pregnant and living with the Batistas is a people-pleaser with a sad past. She hears her baby (in utero), Christian Louis, constantly guiding her and singing lullabies.
I don't want to say anymore because I feel it would spoil the ending.
March 23, 2011
Full Disclosure: This writer is a friend of mine, and I may be influenced by the fact that he has purchased beer for me on occasion. Though, I'm pretty sure whether or not someone has bought me a beer has little influence on how much I like their book. But still, it's nice when someone buys you beer, isn't it?
Anyway, this is a damn good book. It occupies a nice slice of real estate between the occasionally-warring nations of literary fiction and the crime novel. I realize these distinctions aren't ultimately that helpful, though. It's probably more accurate to say that Dogfight is an incredibly well written book with electric prose, that touches on some universal human struggles while also featuring drug-dealing, double-crosses, and some devilishly good crime-type plotting down the stretch. As soon as I see gritty people doing gritty things, I've got a hair trigger to yell "Crime Novel Right Here!" But this is a fascinating little hybrid that doesn't like to stay in one place for long.
Something I really appreciated about the book was its generous use of a roving third person perspective. I say generous because having access to so many characters' thoughts, goals, hopes, dreams, and bathroom habits, made the distinctions between good and bad pleasantly difficult to parse. It made the book feel populated by an array of complicated troubled folk, just trying to figure it all out like the rest of us. I particularly liked a lone chapter devoted to a young Russian ecstasy dealer's first kiss.
Finally, without giving away anything, I'd just like to say that this is a book that delivers in the end. All of the tension we readers drag with us through the pages is rewarded here with nine kinds of catharsis. Which should be the title of something.
Anyway, this is a damn good book. It occupies a nice slice of real estate between the occasionally-warring nations of literary fiction and the crime novel. I realize these distinctions aren't ultimately that helpful, though. It's probably more accurate to say that Dogfight is an incredibly well written book with electric prose, that touches on some universal human struggles while also featuring drug-dealing, double-crosses, and some devilishly good crime-type plotting down the stretch. As soon as I see gritty people doing gritty things, I've got a hair trigger to yell "Crime Novel Right Here!" But this is a fascinating little hybrid that doesn't like to stay in one place for long.
Something I really appreciated about the book was its generous use of a roving third person perspective. I say generous because having access to so many characters' thoughts, goals, hopes, dreams, and bathroom habits, made the distinctions between good and bad pleasantly difficult to parse. It made the book feel populated by an array of complicated troubled folk, just trying to figure it all out like the rest of us. I particularly liked a lone chapter devoted to a young Russian ecstasy dealer's first kiss.
Finally, without giving away anything, I'd just like to say that this is a book that delivers in the end. All of the tension we readers drag with us through the pages is rewarded here with nine kinds of catharsis. Which should be the title of something.
Read
December 30, 2010I have very mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, I loved it. I loved the setting (Jackson Heights, Queens), and I felt it was portrayed very realistically. I also loved the characters. Alfredo, Tariq, Isabel, and all of the lesser characters were so vivid in my mind.
But. I had two major problems. The first is the subtitle, cover, and general tone of the descriptive copy of the book. None of that is necessarily the author's fault, but I felt like the book was portrayed as a madcap, picaresque, Raising Victor Vargas-style story. Of course, it's about drug dealers, so it's going to be a bit grittier, but I was really not prepared for how harsh this book gets in the second half. And that was the author's choice, because the tone was somewhat lighter at the beginning and just gets darker and darker. The other, related problem for me was the ending. I won't spoil what happens, but this dark progression culminates in something that seemed to me to be very out of character for Alfredo, the main character. It could have worked as a climax though if his feelings and thoughts and actions were explored more, but instead it immediately shifts forward in time by a year for the last chapter. The ending felt very rushed and unfinished.
On the whole, I would recommend it because I did enjoy reading it, but be prepared to be somewhat unsatisfied. Also, if violence against women or dog-on-dog violence bothers you, DO NOT READ THIS BOOK.
But. I had two major problems. The first is the subtitle, cover, and general tone of the descriptive copy of the book. None of that is necessarily the author's fault, but I felt like the book was portrayed as a madcap, picaresque, Raising Victor Vargas-style story. Of course, it's about drug dealers, so it's going to be a bit grittier, but I was really not prepared for how harsh this book gets in the second half. And that was the author's choice, because the tone was somewhat lighter at the beginning and just gets darker and darker. The other, related problem for me was the ending. I won't spoil what happens, but this dark progression culminates in something that seemed to me to be very out of character for Alfredo, the main character. It could have worked as a climax though if his feelings and thoughts and actions were explored more, but instead it immediately shifts forward in time by a year for the last chapter. The ending felt very rushed and unfinished.
On the whole, I would recommend it because I did enjoy reading it, but be prepared to be somewhat unsatisfied. Also, if violence against women or dog-on-dog violence bothers you, DO NOT READ THIS BOOK.
September 21, 2013
Matt was in my MFA program: he was a third year when I was a first and we were in poetry workshop together. I really enjoy his poetic sensibility and look forward to watching his career rocket. I likely would not have picked up this story if I didn't know Matt--I'm not quite the audience for a drug-dealing tough-guy-in-the-city narrative (though I am a fairly catholic reader), and I'm glad I did. I managed to completely forget the fact of knowing the author and fell into the world of this book. How amazing that it was able to hum like this for me. He's a gorgeous writer--great moments of poetic prose at just the right moments, with excellent pacing.
Congrats, Matt. I can't wait to read your next one.
Some lines I copied:
Confused, he looks down at his hand, as if to make sure this is still a blunt he’s offering, that it hasn’t turned into something else entirely, a cup of tea maybe, or a big brass tuba.
She cut her legs. Blood wriggled into her socks.
The beeper weighs heavy. It causes the shirt to droop downward, exposing the root of Alfredo’s throat.
He pitches it down the lane, and the ball breaks left, dropping heavily into the gutter. The pins stand erect, unimpressed.
little comets of blood all over the family’s face towel
the lanyards of brutalized skin, where the kitchen knife tore up her calves
He goes up on his tiptoes to see his brother gripping the dog by the sleek engine of its neck.
Congrats, Matt. I can't wait to read your next one.
Some lines I copied:
Confused, he looks down at his hand, as if to make sure this is still a blunt he’s offering, that it hasn’t turned into something else entirely, a cup of tea maybe, or a big brass tuba.
She cut her legs. Blood wriggled into her socks.
The beeper weighs heavy. It causes the shirt to droop downward, exposing the root of Alfredo’s throat.
He pitches it down the lane, and the ball breaks left, dropping heavily into the gutter. The pins stand erect, unimpressed.
little comets of blood all over the family’s face towel
the lanyards of brutalized skin, where the kitchen knife tore up her calves
He goes up on his tiptoes to see his brother gripping the dog by the sleek engine of its neck.
December 22, 2010
With an aggressively playful and meandering voice, Burgess takes us through a sweeping view of a neighborhood in Queens. We start with Alfredo, a skinny and anxious drug dealer, but are quickly thrust into a wide cast of characters that ranges from russian immigrants, to a newly released inmate, to Alfredo's pregnant girlfriend, and beyond. Alfredo's must deal with his brother Tariq's (formerly Jose Jr. before a prison conversion to Islam) release from prison. Isabell, Alfredo's now pregnant girlfriend, used to date Tariq before his conviction, but fell in love with Alfredo during Tariq's sentence. Tariq's return forms the meat of the narrative and we soon learn that Tariq isn't exactly reformed. The novel's plot is a bit convoluted and at times, too convenient. The climax is ultimately unsatisfying as it wraps the plot up in a neat package that feels overly constructed and unreal. The prose is lively and fun, but at times stretches a bit too far and wanders in ways that allow the narrative to bumble. Despite these shortcomings, the book as a whole is a fun and quick romp through a frenzied neighborhood, complete with danger, violence, and love. Though Burgess doesn't succeed in maintaining a fictional dream throughout, there are sections that really hum. His love of language shows. I'll be interested to see what he does with his next book.
Read
August 11, 2011Many authors miss the nuances of the world they create. The tension of whats unsaid between two lovers. The witty, playful banter that captures the strength of the relationship of two brothers. The physical gestures that demonstrate the dominance of one person over another. Matt Burgess captures dialogue with the best of them. His characters are complex. In relationships between father and son, brothers, and lovers, he alternates between moments of fear, moments of trust, and moments of love. It is simple to imagine the physical presence of these well-rounded characters in Queens, NY and I suspect this book will be made into a movie.
You will crave the answers to several questions as the book progresses.
Will a conversion to Islam in jail change Tariq's ways?
Will Alfredo and Isabel have a happy ending?
and in a killer subplot (see Chapter 9- "The Many Loves of Vladimir Shifrin"), will Vladimir be properly avenged?
These cravings are what makes the book such a stellar read. Nothing gets resolved quickly in this incredibly realistic tale.
These cravings are what makes the book such a stellar read. Nothing gets resolved quickly in this incredibly realistic tale.
Looking forward to his next book.
You will crave the answers to several questions as the book progresses.
Will a conversion to Islam in jail change Tariq's ways?
Will Alfredo and Isabel have a happy ending?
and in a killer subplot (see Chapter 9- "The Many Loves of Vladimir Shifrin"), will Vladimir be properly avenged?
These cravings are what makes the book such a stellar read. Nothing gets resolved quickly in this incredibly realistic tale.
These cravings are what makes the book such a stellar read. Nothing gets resolved quickly in this incredibly realistic tale.
Looking forward to his next book.
April 27, 2011
Like a "West Side Story" set in 2011, "Dogfight: A Love Story" takes place in New York City against a backdrop of mixed ethnicities, and is driven by youth rivalries and a high-risk love affair. But while WSS was the dramatic vision of mature artists distantly fascinated by youth gangs of New York, DLS is by a 28-year-old who grew up, one might say, on location.
The story unfolds over a weekend in Queens, during which 19-year-old Alfredo Batista, a small-time drug dealer, stages a welcome-home for his brother Tariq, newly released from prison. It's not a purely joyous event, however, since there is some question as to whether Alfredo figured in Tariq's arrest, and there is no question that he has made Tariq's girlfriend, Isabel, pregnant.
WSS was tragic and romantic; Burgess's story is tragic as well, but also gritty, affectionate, and hopeful. He doesn't seem to think tragedy is unconditionally terminal; life goes on and humor happens. His characters are tender-tough and memorable, the plot fast and clever. Bets are on for when "Dogfight" becomes a movie.
The story unfolds over a weekend in Queens, during which 19-year-old Alfredo Batista, a small-time drug dealer, stages a welcome-home for his brother Tariq, newly released from prison. It's not a purely joyous event, however, since there is some question as to whether Alfredo figured in Tariq's arrest, and there is no question that he has made Tariq's girlfriend, Isabel, pregnant.
WSS was tragic and romantic; Burgess's story is tragic as well, but also gritty, affectionate, and hopeful. He doesn't seem to think tragedy is unconditionally terminal; life goes on and humor happens. His characters are tender-tough and memorable, the plot fast and clever. Bets are on for when "Dogfight" becomes a movie.
December 20, 2010
Anyone familiar with Queens or Manhattan will smile at the mention of botegas, pizzerias, and other things strictly "New York". The book centers around two brothers, Alfredo and Jose (aka Tariq - his Muslim name he acquired in prison). Alfredo is about to be a teen father with his girlfriend Isabel, who was Tariq's girlfriend before he went off to prison. Alfredo's feelings towards his brother are complex; while he is not looking forward to his arrival and wants to protect Isabel from him, he still wants to have his approval. With Tariq arriving home, Alfredo and his partner in crime, Winston, need to plan something big. Alfredo acquires some ecstasy tablets he hopes will give his brother a way back into drug dealing, and begins to plan a dogfight as a sort of welcome home party. This book is not so much about action, but the internal conflicts of the characters---who are not defiantly good or bad.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews