NEW PEOPLE

Maria and Khalil are Brooklyn hipsters before the term "hipster" becomes mainstream or pejorative. Kristen Ariza narrates with hipster ennui. While Senna's writing requires listeners to understand the complexities of race and class, Ariza's narration is likely to muddle that understanding and, in doing so skew, the listening experience. This is unfortunate because the novel peels its characters experiences like an onion. What is the source of Maria's obsession with the Poet? Why would she reject Khalil, "a good man," even in her mother's estimation? And who are the New People, really? How do they fit with the "old people," the unambiguous (stereotypical?) blacks and whites in their world? Senna's writing survives Ariza's spiritless treatment, but not without blemishes. M.P.P. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2017]