Dream Jungle

I was not expecting to receive a book that was so beat up. There were crusty stains, dents, and lots of warped water-damaged pages throughout the book.

This is the 3rd book I've read by Jessica Hagedorn. Her writing is amazing! The characters in Dream Jungle are well developed... The subject matter and themes discussed are also well written and developed and edgy. Dream Jungle is a fun, fast, gritty page turner! Once you begin reading this novel it is difficult to put down as you want to find out what happens next.

Loved this book. One of my new favorites. Beautiful language. Well connected and intertwined stories. Loved it!!

Such a mysterious, alluring & disturbing book! What is good: the writing. The language. The sense of place. You can feel the heat. Be utterly squashed by the poverty. Be intrigued by the characters. It's even okay that you don't know if the tribe is a hoax or not. What is annoying: the many characters, and many POVs, so many that it's hard to keep track of them all. It is also annoying that sometimes a section on a certain character is in first person, and sometimes third. Well worth reading.

What a ride. In short, it was a rush to read Dream Jungle. The characters are fascinating and the environment and situations these people are in this story are as equally compelling. I can't even begin to describe the book because the characters and plot lines are so layered and complex. It is woven tightly though and in the end, everything makes perfect sense. Jessica Hagedorn is one of the premiere Filipina American writers around--thank you for consistently producing outstanding work!