Starred review from October 4, 2021
Gonzalez’s debut collection crackles with humor and tension in brilliantly crafted stories about food and relationships. In “Packed White Spaces,” the narrator forces himself to attend a party with former college friends where the white hosts celebrate their wealth by showing off their new washer and dryer. The narrator feels self-conscious, misses his ex-girlfriend, and muses, “Does Money have the power to stave off weight gain from fast-food dinners or... diabetes?” In “A Mountain of Invertebrate,” Austin orders a seafood dish with portions to share, despite knowing his date, Jorge, doesn’t like it. Watching Austin eat, Jorge thinks about all the leftovers Austin leaves in his fridge, which he dutifully consumes because “he was raised to be a garbage disposal.” In “Little Moves,” Felix, who is bisexual, ponders what to do with the ashes of his recently deceased sister, Vanessa, who willed him diet books and disapproved of his dating men. He meets with his younger sister, Julisa, for guidance, thinking she might have insight after having cremated her dog, and the story ends with a surprisingly touching memory of Vanessa. Throughout, Gonzalez works multiple registers, creating rich, compressed portraits of his characters. This is as poignant as it is hilarious.
November 1, 2021
Gonzalez's first story collection, which can be read in a single sitting, features bisexual and gay Puerto Rican protagonists and narrators. It also features food--messy, glorious, misused, overeaten, real-life, and symbolic food. The lead story, "Packed White Spaces," is set during a party held to celebrate the purchase of a washer/dryer; the narrator brings $3.99 wine while the white hosts serve a cheese platter. Food is the lens through which connection and disconnection are explored. Multiple stories edge close to vignettes, leaving readers with strong sensory impressions of small, important moments. The standout story "Better Than All That" accompanies the narrator on a life-changing night that begins in an Applebee's, winds through bars, and ends in painful reckonings with desire and the past. To his credit, Gonzalez does not shy away from the gross, the strange, or the uncomfortable. A sister dies. A breakup ruins lives. A hookup wants to be punched in the chest. A bedroom stool invites sex-watching while cereal-eating. Food is compellingly centered in the lives of these queer characters to provocative effect.
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