I got disturbed by "Money To Burn"

 Hi, fellow readers,

This is the last obligatory book we must read, and we are almost at the end of this term! We were to read "Money to Burn" by Ricardo Piglia this week. I was not expecting this book to be as disturbing as it was. This is the most disturbing book I have read. Although, I haven't read that many books in my life. This book was hard to follow and not the easiest to read in an understandable way; however, I didn't find myself dozing off as much as I did for Proust. This book focused on killing, sex and drugs, and I was not here for it. One thing I learned about myself while reading this book was that I am a sensitive reader, and this book was hard to read. I honestly was surprised at some parts and was shocked by what was written down on paper. I had to accept what was said and move on while reading.

Therefore, I did not enjoy this book. We talked about this in the "Time of the Doves" class about reading for analysis and academics. I didn't enjoy this book and was reading more academically. I had to read this book analytically, so I wouldn't get caught up about how many distributing sexual references or scenes there were. From what I read, I dont think many of the sexual acts were consensual. Also, all the cocaine they were snorting, which I believe wasn't the worst part. Still, I had trouble reading the grotesque descriptive scenes of blood and murder, for example, when Gaucho blew that redhead princess's head off and more scenes that I can't even begin to describe. The story introduces us to Dorda (Blond Gaucho) and Brignone, also known as "The Kid," who are depicted as lovers and inseparable. I believe Crow Mereles was a bit sex-obsessed, Blond Gaucho went heavy on drugs, and he was hearing female voices in his head. So, in my opinion, many issues were going on with Gaucho, mainly because of how much cocaine he was taking and because he was a psychotic killer starting from a young age. His mom saw it when he was younger. "The Kid" left his comfortable family to become a bandit and could take up a life of violence with Gaucho and the others in the gang. One thing that I learned from this book was how many different ways you can die from the death penalty, which I thought, of course, was unsettling but also intriguing. I found it interesting that on page eight, it said, "Every citizen of the capital in a mask, to avert contact and avoid contagion" (8). Right away, I thought of Covid, which I thought was fascinating. This book has caused me to think, be disturbed, and get confused, and I've learned a few things from it. 

Discussion Question #1: What type of reader are you?

Discussion Question #2: What did you think of this book? Did you like it or dislike it? 


Comments

  1. Laurenne duManoirMarch 19, 2024 at 3:21 PM

    I also did not love this book! I can appreciate that it was trying to explore this side of life for some people, but I also found the sex and drugs to be a bit excessive, even for character development purposes. I too read the book more analytically but it was entertaining even if it was not my favourite! - Laurenne

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  2. TesiMarch 19, 2024 at 8:06 PM

    Sofia, what do you think made it “hard to follow and not the easiest to read in an understandable way”? You are right in saying that there was a lot of sexual abuse and violence. There are quite a bit of rape scenes that are very very unsettling and graphic, so I understand where you’re coming from. Thanks for still writing a couple of good points of reflection in your blog!

    - Tesi

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  3. AnonymousMarch 21, 2024 at 9:08 PM

    Hi Sofia! I also didn't enjoy reading this book that much at all and found it to be quite disturbing. I totally agree that this book was a bit difficult to follow along, for me the nicknames were quite confusing as it took me some time to who each person was being referred to.
    -- May

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