Tuesday, October 9, 2012

A review of Distraction by J.L. Campbell

SPOILER ALERT: READ NO FURTHER IF YOU HATE HEARING PLOT DETAILS. Oh what can I say about "Distraction" that won't make me come across as judgmental because of the subject matter? First off, I want to say that J.L. Campbell (or Joy as some may know her), is a great writer. She has paid meticulous attention to providing what I think is a genuine representation of Jamaican culture in this book. And "Distraction" is a physically beautiful novel, providing Jamaican proverbs at the top of each chapter and a corresponding translation as the accent may be difficult for non-native peoples to understand. Additionally, the book has wonderful prose and in my reading, I don't think I spotted a single error. Also, each chapter is graced with a silhouette of palm trees. How can one not be pleased with palm trees?

"Distraction" is a book that follows the lives of three very interesting but destructive women. Their names are Kyra, Justine, and Dionne. And when I say "destructive" what I mean is this: they are liars, cheats, and victims who make choices that are a little difficult to get through without squirming. I had an impulse to invite them into a room, sit them down, and then stand before them on a soap box to make them accountable for all the things that they are doing while others chanted "preach on brotha!" in the background.

Kyra has trouble with an abusive man named Warren. He's a deadbeat that insists on sucking her dry of all monetary resources, on basically raping her, of trying to sabotage everything in her life, and on top of all that, he's a criminal. He's a pretty dispicable character in just having those qualities. I kind of question why Joy also decided to make him bi-sexual and then use that as a tool to paint another man, Milton, in a really unsavory light (Warren and Milton have been doing it, but more on that in just a bit). And of course, the fact that Milton is hiding a same sex attraction from his wife leads to his impotency in bed (well he's not attracted to girls) and to the willingness to destroy his family's financial security by giving Warren TONS of money for his silence. All this says to me is that in backwards Jamaica, two guys kissing is a fate worse than death. And if this is true, I guess I won't be visiting Jamaica anytime soon DESPITE my love of palm trees and my respect for Usain Bolt.

So Milton's wife is of course, one of the three women named Justine. And by the way, she's an adulterer. So it's not like her lies are any better than Milton's. And then we have Dionne who's also a liar, having an affair with a guy that's basically a stalker by the name of Alex. But she must be attracted to stalkers because her husband has serious trust issues, answering her phone, calling her to make sure he knows where she is, etc. But I guess he has reasons for having trust issues...his wife really is sleeping around. I hate the fact that Clayton is basically clueless. You'd think that at least one man in this book wouldn't be a complete douchebag. But that doesn't happen. Oh and Alex, he's a rapist on top of being a stalker...so yeah.

Did I like "Distraction"? Yes, I did like it. But these characters are not good people. Are they real? Probably. I think there's a huge dose of reality in these books and toward the end, a statement that people still believe WRONGLY that AIDS is a deadly disease. AIDS is not fatal anymore. That may be a news flash for some people, but we have drugs now that do perfectly well in controlling this disease. I have a friend with AIDS, and he's a successful college professor in a happy relationship and has no problems in living a great life.
I guess this bigot is representative of Jamaica. Buju Banton, the anti-gay Jamaican dance hall,
 ragga, and reggae singer, whose song “Boom Bye Bye” advocates killing gay men with
 submachine guns and by pouring acid on them. If I had to guess, he probably uses
"The Bible" to justify his hate speech. I can't say that I'd be surprised by that either.
If "Distraction" is a slice of life of what it is to be Jamaican then all I can say is, "Jamaica needs a better public education system." I would recommend this book to anyone that might be attracted to stories where characters make destructive decisions. For example, if you liked "Closer" with Natalie Portman and Jude Law, then you'll probably like "Distraction." For the record, after I got done with "Closer" I secretly wished that all those characters had gotten crushed under a bus.

I give four stars out of five simply because there were parts of this book that clearly irritated me about the characters. But aside from that, it's a great, page-turning if not emotionally frustrating read. And if you like hot but sensual sex scenes, Joy accomplishes that better than just about anyone I've read. her amazing skills made me feel like I was there in the character's skin, enjoying the naughtiness of every single action.

Buy it on AMAZON for $3.99 HERE.

29 comments:

  1. JL will be happy with that.
    Saw your interview on Donna's site yesterday as well.

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  2. Sounds like JL is skilled at making the reader feel some deep emotion about characters. I could hear your loathing. :)

    Good Job, JL.

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  3. Micheal,
    Many thanks for reading and reviewing. Sadly, Jamaican is a homophobic society. Many of us mind our own business, but there are some of us who don't know how to live and let live. And yeah, there's still a huge stigma attached to HIV and AIDS.

    People take away different things after reading this book. Guess that's what you want as a writer.

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  4. Interesting review. Sounds like heavy conflict that will no doubt lead to a page turner.

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  5. I love edgy stories. This sounds like one for me. And er...don't presume that Buju's hate comes from the Bible. He's obviously mentally ill. Many do walk among us and make music.

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  6. They should do a "How It Should Have Ended" of "Closer" where everyone gets hit by a bus at the end. That would have been a better ending to be sure.

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  7. Awesome! I've been curious what this story was about ever since I saw the cover. Thanks for reviewing this, and way to go, J.L., for getting it out there! :)

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  8. It's VERY tough to write a good novel with unlikable characters. So that's commendable that they would undertake such a challenge.

    Banton wrote the song when he was 15, siting his Rastifari "religion" as his belief at the time. I believe he publicly apologized for that song later, however. Isn't he in the Federal Pen???

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  9. Well, the book is sitting on my Kindle app, but I don't know how soon I will get to it.

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  10. Sounds interesting, but when I finally find myself with some free time on my hands I intend to read "Slipstream."

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  11. Thanks for this, Michael! Love seeing JL around! :)

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  12. @Alex: She seems to be happy with it.

    @Brinda: She is a great writer. Maybe someday she'll pen a novel with good characters in them.

    @J.L.: I think "minding your own business" is at the root of the problem. We are all connected, past and present. And through each crime as well as each kindness, we birth our future. If people want a future that is filled with love and kindness, then hatred needs to be addressed. To ignore a fire that's burning will just mean that it will spread.

    @Cindy: It's a racy soap opera! But the sensuousness of the sex between Xavier and Justine is scorching hot.

    @Em-Musing: I like how "mentally ill" is the cop out for everything these days. Whatever happened to "He's an asshole!" which Buju clearly is.

    @P.T.: I agree! So you've seen "Closer" eh? I hated that movie. Not a character in that show with a single redeemable or admirable trait. My brother convinced me to watch it saying, "This is how life really is!" My response was: "Maybe for the people that you know."

    @DPK: I'm happy to have satisfied your curiosity.

    @Jay: I checked Wikipedia and found no reference to a federal incarceration. The page also confirmed that he still hates homosexuals. And rastafari is based on Christianity (just a different take). That's all the time I'm going to waste on this asshole (Buju). I think I know everything that I need to know about him.

    @Stephen: No rush to read my book, sir! I think it's more rewarding for me when readers who genuinely discover it rather than feeling obligated to turn the pages write me and let me know how much they enjoyed it.

    @Morgan: I think you should change your name on the avatar to "Red Head with four ankle biters."




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  13. Ok, so now I'm even more intrigued! Got to love a book that has you yelling at the characters as if they were real people. Shows how good the writing is. I have Distraction on my wait list, might have to bump it up a few notches...(:

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  14. I would probably enjoyed reading this but if not of the characters grew and redemed themselves by the end I would feel disappointed.
    Can't believe Buju Banton is for real.

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  15. Fantastic review! It sounds like J.L. writes a very realistic novel.

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  16. Thanks for the thorough review of Joyce's book. It's hard to see characters make a lot of bad decisions. I'd be there preaching with you.

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  17. So many great books, so little time.

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  18. Well, poo. I skipped the post since it is on my TBR list. Thanks for letting me know you were giving out spoilers. :)

    But it sound like it was a good review for the comments.

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  19. Oh, Man. I'm always reading stuff with two guys kissing. I don't want to have it ruined for me.

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  20. Thanks for the review, Michael. Congrats to JL

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  21. Fabulous review, Michael. This sounds like a page-turner. I love to hate characters.

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  22. Thanks again, Mike and thanks to your readers for taking the time to comment.

    For the record, Banton was incarcerated in Florida, not sure if he was moved. He's serving time for drug trafficking. I believe there was a gun possession charge too. As to why of all that, I'm baffled.

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  23. It looked like a great review to me. I'm glad you shared it.

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  24. A very good, honest review, Michael. The fact that you recommended this book even though you wanted these characters crushed under a bus means the author has pulled off a difficult literary challenge: she's telling us about people who aren't good and aren't very likable but who still have a compelling story to tell. That happens in real life.

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  25. This is an excellent, balanced review. I don't think it's my kind of read but I enjoyed hearing what it was about and your take on it.

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  26. Amazing, candid review. I'm looking forward to reading the book!
    Ugh, I hadnt known that about Buju. Darn it. I liked one of his earliest albums.

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  27. My husband and I did not enjoy our travels to Jamaica. One of my dearest friends is Bahamian, and many of her family live in Jamaica. I was shocked by some of the acceptable behaviors in their culture. Yes, that sounds judgmental, but I don't like to see my friends hurt. It sounds like such a well written and real book. Great job, Joy.

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  28. No matter how 'less' fatal AIDS is no one wants to be told they have it. Also it depends on the person who gets AIDS they're people who still die quickly despite the medication. Glad you enjoyed Distraction. No matter how irritating you might find some characters J.L. wrote about the real Jamaica.

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