I said it at least three other times, but I will say it again: that was depressing. I don’t know what I was thinking when I chose the book for my English course (honestly, the title caught my attention - it sounded cool and somber and edgy). Lullabies for Little Criminals was not the kind of bad where it was choppy and hard to actually get through, but rather it was the kind of bad that was Twilight by Stephenie Meyer bad - the writing is easy to follow, but everything else is just … not that great. Basically, I found a few things off about the book: A. First off, it was really problematic - and I hate that word so I am definitely not using it lightly! Disclaimer: I think writing, and any form of expression, deserves to be problematic because it is a reflection of real life which is, ultimately, problematic (yikes). This book referenced and narrated really sensitive topics - and I understand the point of that, as I have discussed in previous posts - but it honestly did not have the right setting or context to do so effectively. No one can deny that the issues discussed exist (child abuse, emotional neglect, underage sex work, drug abuse, etc.). However, there are definitely MUCH better ways to preface and develop these problems in a fictional story than to do it through a prepubescent girl. Imagine reading and stumbling across this quote: “Children make the best prostitutes because they’re the most perfunctory about the whole encounter” (O’Neill). My gut reaction was to throw the book as far away as possible, which I obviously could not do due to academic responsibility. I am still not sure, though, that there is a better reaction to the idea that an adult author wrote this line as the passing thought of a 12 year old. B. The characters were not well written. Their personalities came off cliched at the start: Baby was the curious cat and her father was the clueless goldfish. They managed to stay that way even though they both seemed to go through many difficult moments. Because Baby is the main character, I focused the most on her development (or lack thereof). Baby recounts everything as if she was watching grass grow and she never voices any emotional reaction: “He had intense gravitational force … If I kicked my shoes up in the air, they would go into orbit around him” (O’Neill). It is disconcerting for a reader to read emotional events in this way. In other aspects of my summative assignment, I explore the effect of Jules’ emotional neglect on Baby. I tried to make an argument that could point to her emotional development: that point was about how her view of beautiful things became jaded. I could not find sufficient evidence to show her aging emotionally. Baby stays the same from beginning to end. As for other characters, they never stuck around long enough to develop, so the criticism is lost there. C. Finally, going off of the two points mentioned above, the story is not effective or impressionable. These types of real-life-is-terrible-and-raw stories can be written tactfully (See: Khaled Hosseini, author of super depressing, super effective, and really impactful novels), but this book seems to miss the points. My one consistent emotion going through the story was distaste. Since the characters were so flat, it was genuinely difficult to follow the chronological order of things; the character does not express any change to other characters so I got the impression that time was just not happening at all. I also did not enjoy the subject matter. I had to dig really, really deep to connect to the plot and to the main character. At the end, I had a lot of questions concerning the events, I was baffled by how emotionally unchanged the characters seemed to be, and for those reasons the purpose of the novel (to inspire some kind of reaction regarding the atrocity of drug/sex culture) was not fulfilled. I always extract some kind of lesson from everything I read, and I guess this book taught me that coming-of-age modern young adult fiction is not my genre (unless it is dystopian). Tags: #lullabiesforlittlecriminals #bookreview #englishclassblogpost #notgood #reallyexaggeratedbadreview Works Cited
ONeill, Heather. Lullabies for Little Criminals: a novel. Harper Perennial, 2016. Giphy. “Animated Gifs.” GIPHY, www.giphy.com [used for all pictures found in blog post] Disclaimer: I read the book on a Kindle, and therefore do not know the page numbers for the quotes
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I believe the reader’s literary theory gave me the most insight into the novel. While the archetype theory and the feminist theory were intuitive and thought-provoking, they asked questions that related to constructed systems outside of my relatability. For example, the feminist theory begged questions about the perspective of women and their treatment, and I am not a woman. The archetypal theory asked me to recognize preconceived cliches in the text, which requires intuition outside of oneself and one’s real and lived experiences. The reader’s literary theory was the most insightful because it demanded that I connect to the text by using my experiences and my feelings to draw different conclusions about the story and its characters. Making connections between my experience and the characters made the novel a very impactful read. The main character was a wonder to me. Baby is a very interesting character, albeit a very jaded one. To connect with her I imagined that she was my younger sibling. I already have a younger brother her age (twelve to thirteen years old), so this imagined person was not hard to conceive. My brother and Baby have many things in common. They are both terribly naive, unexpectedly observant, and malleable. Baby’s naivete is evident in how she deals with explicit themes like drugs and sex, and how she uses them as a means for love and connection. Her innocence seeps through even when she does what she does, because she does it for pure reasons. She is observant in the way that she interacts with others, and is capable of understanding what type of person they are. She analyzes her father in this way, and all of his drug-addled friends. She is malleable because of her desire for love - she gets looped into dangerous schemes by a pimp and different friends because she craves attention and connection. Imagining my brother involved in a fraction of what Baby was involved in made me overcome with pain. By relating to Baby as a character, the novel became an emotional experience for me, and therefore a more relevant read than it otherwise would have been. The themes highlighted in the novel were another powerful impact on me while observing the story through the lens of reader literary theory. As a reader trying to relate to the text, I constantly asked myself questions while reading. The flagrant display of brazen sexuality, drug activity, and criminality in the novel was shocking. Such a dark reality being painted through the eyes of a young girl made the story horrific. From the first chapter, these ideas were made explicit. Baby lived with a heroin-addicted father, she was completely aware of prostitutes and where they worked, and she understood that her father constantly stole things to get them by. As someone living in a stable home, with law-abiding people, and friends significantly older than Baby, this reality is unbelievably grim. She is introduced as a pubescent girl, and reading this particular story while imagining that a child is telling me how her father leaves her occasionally to go score with his buddies is nothing less than horrifying. By trying to relate to the story, its themes were made very obvious and they left a genuine impression on me. In conclusion, the reader’s literary theory was the most meaningful to me as a reader. I asked myself questions while reading and tried to connect to the text. My questions after reading this story are as follows:
Note: if you select the image it takes you to the website source When it comes to the protagonist’s attitude toward the male and female characters in the text, Baby’s interactions with men are often bad: Jules and Alphonse are primary examples. Jules, her father, neglects her so badly, that she reflects and thinks: “Lonely children probably wrote the Bible,” when considering what she would do for his attention (O’Neill). Her relationship with Alphonse, her pimp, is equally as horrible. This can be seen in a comical situation wherein Baby is walking with Alphonse when they spot Jules, and he says: ““Look at the garbage picker man!” Alphonse said” (O’Neill). It is comical because her relationships with both men are so tainted and terrible, that they recognize the other for being a dirty person. Her interactions with women are usually wonderful: any adopted mother figure in her life has usually been a source of happiness for Baby, rather than a source of distress (like the men). Baby looked to these women for maternal love, she found comfort in them: “When she said sweet things in my ear, it would slide right down into my heart” (O’Neill). Throughout the novel, any verbal interactions with Jules (for example) were devoid of love, and Baby spends most of the book begging it from him or finding it somewhere else (like Alphonse). Baby acknowledges her appreciation for women as any adolescent would: “Women aren't mean the way that men are. They're full of life and they're like God in that way” (O’Neill). Her youth and innocence are obvious in her ignorant comparison, and her simple language. These interactions affect my response as a reader because they influence how I see any new characters. Any male characters are automatically red flagged, and any female characters I view as a hope for Baby that she receives some of the guidance or love that she so desperately wants(needs). When it comes to how men and women are represented in the text, there is a focus on women being sexual. In the first portion of the book, when Baby was in her initial home, all of her female friends were obsessed with sex and were usually sexually experienced. As the novel continues, this image is only enforced. Not only are the women very sexual in nature, but their power is limited, and they are limited in what they can do (for Baby). Her friends have no influence over her life situation, fellow prostitutes cannot help but be in the same cycle of use and abuse as she is, her foster mother was limited legally, and her adopted mother figure (a friend of Jules) could not provide a new and better home for Baby (than the one she or Jules had). These limitations were apparent in the roles that the men and women played in Baby’s life. The women were caring, they provided her with love and care. The men were the breadwinners, they provided her with shelter, and they did so by profiting from illicit behaviour (mostly sex, and some theft and drug dealing). Jules himself communicated this difference in roles to Baby: “My dad had told me that if you stayed out after nine and you were a girl it meant that you wanted to have sex with whoever was passing by. He told me that if I got raped after nine o'clock the courts would probably say I deserved it” (O’Neill). Here he understands and communicates that women are sexual, and that men may solicit this sexuality (in this example specifically, they did so by raping). Baby also notices the difference between a women’s ideal role and the man’s: “They often got my file mixed up and thought that I had gone to juvenile detention for being a prostitute. All I had done was date a pimp” (O’Neill). This quote is an example of that because Alphonse had used her as a prostitute, but all she was looking for was love, and she thought she had done that by dating him. She seems to recognize the difference between sex and love: It’s nasty while it’s happening, but you forget about it soon afterward. And sometimes it isn’t even that nasty. Whatever it is, it’s so far from love” (O’Neill). In summary, the role of man and woman is very traditional and explicit in this novel. To finish this blog off I've added a speech given by Role Modal and famous actress Emma Watson at the United Nations convention of 2014. Enjoy. It is quite a bit lengthier than anything that I would usually include on a blog post, but if feminism is a topic that interests you I highly recommend you listen to the entirety of her speech. To recap: since the last blog post, Baby has grown a year, Jules has been in a hospital, she was in a foster home for that time, once Jules leaves the hospital they move back in together, Baby joins a community center and goes to school regularly and starts meeting new people. While reading this novel, I made several observations about the characters. Some of them stood out to as archetypes. I believe Baby is the archetype typically known as the Angel. She is also the Protagonist. She is the protagonist because she is the main character of the novel, but she is Angelic because she is thrust into an evil world that she tries to deal with as best as she can, because she has a good heart. I strongly believe that she is a good girl, Baby’s intentions for everything that she does are fairly innocent, and most of them revolve around her desire to be loved and cared for by her father, or anyone else - or to be similar to him in some way, in order to get closer to him. Her quest for love only leads to bad decisions. The most explicit example of this desire and its manifestation is her relationship with Alphonse, one that develops while her father is emotionally neglecting her as usual. Alphonse is a pimp on her street. Baby feels that “when Alphonse came into my life, it strangely felt a little bit like he was a mother figure. Every good pimp is a mother. When Alphonse spoke to me, his voice always had the same tempo as a lullaby” (O’Neill). Weirdly enough, it’s apparent that Alphonse really does care for Baby in his own way, he tells one of his prostitutes that: “I want that girl” (O’Neill) pointing at Baby. He treated her like a parent would, and spoiled her. This trust and need for love does not end well for Baby, she even muses herself: “I knew Alphonse was a pimp and that sooner or later I was going to have to turn a trick,” meaning prostitute (O’Neill). Her innocence is evident, despite what she does, she “couldn't stay out late at night turning tricks. I wasn't allowed to miss school…” (O'Neill). Baby is an Angel, and her circumstances are very unfortunate. Her father, Jules, could be described as a Trickster, a Guardian, or maybe even the Wicked Stepmother. He is selfish, he has no regard for his daughter in what he does, he does not follow conventional rules, he is impulsive, he is irrational, irresponsible, and promotes chaos through his decisions. As a reaction to her relationship with Alphonse, Jules reacts violently when she tries to cover Alphonse’s gifts to her: “No f***ing twelve-year-old gave you those socks. You're a goddamn liar and you're a whore. If you start with guys now, you'll be all used up and no guy will want you. You're going to be a pervert! No guys like a pervert! You'll know all these moves and shit that he won't. You'll only be fit for drug addicts. Why can't you be a normal girl?...” (O'Neill). This only serves to drive Baby away from him, and it leads to the beginning of a separation between them (in the last third of the book). Clearly, Jules is a Wicked Trickster Guardian, if anything. Other characters in Baby’s life are constantly changing, and not consistent, due to the instability fostered by Jules. She comes across an All-Loving Hero in her foster mother, a Fool for Love in her many guy friends, a Mentor in her group leader at the center, and many Antagonists in the people that Jules interacted with. Heroin use is a common theme across the novel, and could be viewed as a symbolic archetype. It could symbolize the internal chaos the characters feel. Baby herself seems to thinks so, her and Jules: “both did it for the same reason, though: because [they] were both fools who were too fragile to be sad, and because no one was prepared to give us a good enough reason not to do it” (O’Neill). Baby’s journey differs from the archetypal Hero’s journey because her moral compass is skewed. Hero’s typically are moral to a fault, and look to do what is right despite all odds, sometimes despite human reason (Hero stories are popular in sacrificing a good friend or family member for the cause of good, even though this is very unrealistic). Baby actively engages in underaged sex and in drug use. She might be relatively innocent in her thoughts and intentions behind what she does, but she is grown enough to realize that it is wrong and not societally acceptable. Heroes are also usually skilled in some way, whether they are intelligent, strong, or capable of great feats. Baby is young, impoverished, and wields very little power in the real world. Based on her track record so far, I only anticipate that she will come into more trouble as time goes on. Things only seem to get progressively worse, and her behaviours worsen in tandem with her conditions. I doubt it will get any better for Baby, Heroes usually save the day/the world/the universe. I would never go so far as to say Baby is a Hero. She is a very flawed character, and that speaks to the purpose of the novel, and the author’s goal. While Baby is somewhat a good person, she is definitely not a hero. I am not entirely certain that the characters in this novel remind me of another work of fiction. However the experiences that Baby encounter remind me very greatly of Oliver Twist. I read Oliver Twist a long time ago. However, from what I remember, Oliver was an abandoned child, his mother had died during childbirth and for some reason his father was not present in her life when she had given birth, and he lived on the streets. He lived with a mischievous group of boys led by a terrible man who taught them how to pickpocket efficiently. That man collected all their earnings and kept them relatively sheltered, fed, and clothed. Oliver did not love the situation he was in, but it was all he knew and he was happy for it. Later on in the novel he is separated from this group and works as a chimney sweeper for another terrible man, the conditions are even worse. He goes through a series of very unfortunate circumstances before he is found and reclaimed by his family, and then he is spoiled and treated well. Even though I doubt it, I hope this comparison means good things for Baby in the near future. In that same regard he is an Angel, just like Baby is, he lives in terrible circumstances, but is a good person who deserves better and looks for better, as much as he can. Baby has a sobering thought that reminded me more of the Oliver Twist comparison: “Suddenly I realized that I wanted everything to be as it was when I was younger. When you're young enough, you don't know that you live in a cheap lousy apartment. A cracked chair is nothing other than a chair. A dandelion growing out of a crack in the sidewalk outside your front door is a garden. You could believe that a song your parent was singing in the evening was the most tragic opera in the world. It never occurs to you when you are very young to need something other than what your parents have to offer you.” (O’Neill) Finally, I would like to reiterate an observation I continuously make while reading this novel. What is astonishing about this book is the language. Specifically, the language is fairly simple. While the story itself can be complex, the language usually isn't. There are many ridiculous concepts introduced, including drug abuse and underage prostitution. However, the author treats it so minimally, and addresses it so casually that it actually inspires a more dramatic response in me. Imagine reading about a triple murder on the back of a cereal box, you would double, triple, quadruple read it! Such is the case for me while I read this novel. The themes are graphic, the relationships are toxic, and yet, the author addresses it in such a nonchalant way that I am forced to pay extra attention to the events in the plot. This author’s style of writing is considerably jarring in relation to the content of the novel, however, I would argue that it is very effective considering her goal (as observed in my previous blog post, I believe the author is trying to call attention to the atrocities in the world by using the lens of an adolescent girl). In addition to the common horrific themes in the novel, the common theme running through my head is horror and pity.
Citation: O’Neill, Heather. Lullabies for Little Criminals: A Novel. Harper Perennial, 2016. *to note, page numbers are not used because I am reading this novel on a Kindle and the numbers are not shown* Lullabies for Little Criminals is a very interesting read. What jars me about the novel is that it is very candid, and makes no attempt to hide certain ideas or expose them slowly to the reader. The assumption behind this style of writing is that the author means to educate the reader and force a reaction regarding the ideas addressed in the story. As a teenage guy in high school, even this story is disturbing. Heather O’Neil has a very jaded view of the world, and especially of neglectful parents. From the way the author speaks through the protagonist, it is almost as if she is recollecting past memories and relaying them to the rest of the world. The story has no slow build-up, there is absolutely no suspense. From page one, a grim reality is painted. The story introduces Jules, a young and immature father (quite frankly, a terrible father). His twelve year old daughter, Baby, understands Jules like he could be an erratic roommate: “Jules had a little kid’s sense of time,” and “Jules didn’t have any problem solving skills and he panicked,” (O’Neil, 5). Immediately, I am given an impression of a very mature protagonist (Baby), and a comically incompetent father. I know Baby is mature because people my age are not usually capable of critiquing their parent’s behaviour and likening them to children, and I am sixteen. By observing his behaviour and making critical judgements of him, Baby is obviously aware of adulthood and how Jules lacks in behaving as a regular, adult parent should. His behaviour and Baby’s perception of him, is clear from the beginnings of the story: “If I’d had parents who were adults, I probably would never have been called Baby” (O’Neil, 7). In my opinion, Jules’ incompetence as a dad, especially in providing a safe environment for Baby, foreshadows future disasters. He uprooted Baby because he was nervous after having betrayed his friend: “Jules was nervous about a friend of his named Kent murdering him in his sleep” (O’Neil, 4). Not only does Jules fail in providing a stable environment for Baby, but he actively engages in illicit activity around her: “Jules and his friends had been calling heroin chocolate milk for years,” (O’Neil, 15). If this is the situation at the start of the novel, what will happen later? What if Jules suddenly does not have any drug money? What if the next time he pisses someone off they have no money to relocate? As a high school student, I know too well how other people suffer if one person makes a stupid mistake. Even just copying one another’s homework is enough to get at least two people in trouble because one person did not do the right thing. Jules is a disaster waiting to happen, and poor Baby will suffer all the repercussions of his actions. Baby is more than aware of her environment, and as a twelve year old with a neglectful father and access to anything that could potentially ruin her life, this does not bode well for her future. Baby is not even a teenager and she is already vividly aware of sex, and even admires sex workers. In observing prostitutes on the streets near her home, she remarks: “They made me feel bad when I was little because they always had beautiful high-heeled boots, while I had to wear ugly galoshes” (O’Neil, 9). As a reader, it breaks my heart to read this from a twelve-year-old’s perspective, especially because the world around her is so bleak. It is very difficult to understand that such a young girl could be exposed to these concepts at such a young age, and it is especially hard for me to wrap my head around because I have a brother the same age as her. His heroes are animated characters, not prostitutes. By introducing these concepts to us through the lens of a child, I think the author is trying to emphasize how damaging different issues are to our society. Baby’s perception of sex might be saying that oversexualization in the media is a poison. Exposing young children to sex at such a young age makes them more mature than they should be, and forces them to deal with things they do not have the capacity to deal with. Baby understands sex, but because she is so young, she is upset because her shoes are uglier than the prostitute’s. Her father is a child, and even she agrees: “I thought of him as my best friend, as if we were almost the same age” (O’Neil, 7). On his way to getting “chocolate milk” with his friend he leaves Baby alone, and kicks her off as if she were a pet and not his daughter: “‘Baby!’ Jules turned and yelled at me. ‘Quit following us. Go play with your doll! Get lost, okay?’” (O’Neil, 17). I can visualize the pain Baby feels in the way she expresses herself. Her word choice is elementary, but the feelings she describes should not be felt by a child: “I was still a little clingy like a little kid with Jules and I hated when he dumped me like that” (O’Neil, 17). Her father is not supposed to make her feel like she might be clingy simply because she wants to be around him. The author paints a grim picture of Baby’s home life. She has no real support system because outside of her father she has no other stability: “Having a young parent meant you had to pack up your stuff in an hour and run away from a twenty-year-old from Oshawa who was going to be mad at you for having sold his guitars” (O’Neil, 7).
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