Dr. H lets us kick back and relax a little

Ahhh. Yes, that is a sigh of relief. Don't get me wrong; I enjoy my literature classes. I mean, I get to read and get a grade for it. Is that great or what? And fortunately for me, I'm just twisted and analytical enough to come up with all kinds of explanations and hidden meanings for the stuff I read. Yippee! Anyhoo . . . This week was quite relaxing compared to the rest of the course. I've been a fan of Grisham and Connelly for a while - you know, lawyers, cops, and detectives running around solving mysteries? Well, that's just the type of thing we got to read this week: Rag and Bone by Michael Nava. Really just an enjoyable read: not too taxing, dome nice plot twists. But in this class, American Fiction Since WWII, this work was entirely appropriate, not because of style or genre, but because of the characters and the issues they addressed. The protagonist here is Henry Rios a lawyer whose partner, Josh has recently died. The novel goes on to address issues like drug use, alcoholism, bisexuality, adoption, gangs, religion - I could go on, but I won't. Any number of these would have been taboo, or at least not dealt with in a positive, compassionate way, a few decades ago. I wanted to dance a jig as I was reading this. Again, one of my classmates doesn't agree - something about treating homosexuality like a limp - but I don't see it. No, this isn't the greatest piece of literature ever written. But it is a wonderful example of the gradually opening minds of the American people. Perhaps this book - and others like it - will help us along.