About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherUniversity of Nebraska Press

ISBN-100803225350

ISBN-139780803225350

eBay Product ID (ePID)84286378

Product Key Features

Book TitleSleep in Me

Number of Pages168 Pages

LanguageEnglish

Publication Year2010

TopicEthnic Studies / Asian American Studies, Personal Memoirs, General, American / General, Sociology / Marriage & Family, Siblings

GenreLiterary Criticism, Family & Relationships, Transportation, Social Science, Biography & Autobiography

AuthorJon Pineda

Book SeriesAmerican Lives Ser.

FormatHardcover

Dimensions

Item Height0.7 in

Item Weight12.3 Oz

Item Length8.8 in

Item Width5.8 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceTrade

LCCN2010-001661

Dewey Edition22

Reviews"Sleep in Me is the rare memoir that takes nothing for granted. . . . [Pineda's] concentrated, vivid scenes move along the edges of silence and speech, shadowing a young man's physical prowess and his sister's broken body, a far-flung family and inborn dislocation, variously furious, tender, devastated, and gallant."-Robert Polito, author of Savage Art: A Biography of Jim Thompson, " Sleep in Me is the rare memoir that takes nothing for granted. . . . [Pineda's] concentrated, vivid scenes move along the edges of silence and speech, shadowing a young man's physical prowess and his sister's broken body, a far-flung family and inborn dislocation, variously furious, tender, devastated, and gallant."-Robert Polito, author of Savage Art: A Biography of Jim Thompson, "Pineda has built his reputation as a poet, but he expands his literary territory with this powerful portrait of love and loyalty between siblings." -Rigoberto González, Critical Mass, "Sleep in Me is a sharp portrait of place, culture, and growing up male and confused in weird America while at the same time being a tender elegy for those lost. Written with the intimacy and immediacy of a diary and the attention to language and sound of a prose poem, this is a superlative and heartfelt memoir by an excellent new writer."-Greg Bottoms, author of Fight Scenes and Angelhead: My Brother's Descent into Madness, "Pineda's account of his sister's cheerleading and overnight transformation makes for a powerful survey of the impact of tragedy on a young boy's coming of age in this outstanding, vivid family memoir." -Diane C. Donovan, California Bookwatch, "Pineda lays bare his struggles with family duty and identity in this literary standout."Julie Kane, Library Journal, "Sleep in Meis a sharp portrait of place, culture, and growing up male and confused in weird America while at the same time being a tender elegy for those lost. Written with the intimacy and immediacy of a diary and the attention to language and sound of a prose poem, this is a superlative and heartfelt memoir by an excellent new writer." Greg Bottoms, author ofFight ScenesandAngelhead: My Brother's Descent into Madness"Faced with the loss of a beloved sister, Jon Pineda articulates the currents and depths of tragedy unavailable to outsiders. . . . At the spiritual heart of the book is the drive to discern grievance from real grief. By the end of this tender and honest memoir, a boy's desire to find and prove himself has strengthened and grown into a man's thoughtful and freely chosen decision to live bravely, intent on facing forces that threaten to overwhelm and silence him." Lia Purpura, author ofIncreaseandOn Looking: Essays"Sleep in Meis the rare memoir that takes nothing for granted. . . . [Pineda's] concentrated, vivid scenes move along the edges of silence and speech, shadowing a young man's physical prowess and his sister's broken body, a far-flung family and inborn dislocation, variously furious, tender, devastated, and gallant." Robert Polito, author ofSavage Art: A Biography of Jim Thompson, "Pineda lays bare his struggles with family duty and identity in this literary standout."-Julie Kane, Library Journal, " Sleep in Me is essentially pure rendered memory, a book that can be taken down from the shelf and opened to any chapter, any moment however random and fleeting, and can make us feel the grand weight of tragedy, and the victory when we fight it."-Noah Renn, Virginian-Pilot, "Jon Pineda turns a simmering lens on his tween and teen years as his family, splintered and stoic, copes with the aftermath of his sister''s incapacitation and demise. In Sleep in Me , Pineda explores, rather than resolves, whether such trauma made him stronger or simply more attuned to heartbreak."Lisa Romeo, Foreword, "[Pineda''s] muted, lyrical messages, to be savored at length, remind us of the value of listening deeply, to ourselves and others."Gina Webb, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Faced with the loss of a beloved sister, Jon Pineda articulates the currents and depths of tragedy unavailable to outsiders. . . . At the spiritual heart of the book is the drive to discern grievance from real grief. By the end of this tender and honest memoir, a boy's desire to find and prove himself has strengthened and grown into a man's thoughtful and freely chosen decision to live bravely, intent on facing forces that threaten to overwhelm and silence him."-Lia Purpura, author of Increase and On Looking: Essays, "[Pineda's] muted, lyrical messages, to be savored at length, remind us of the value of listening deeply, to ourselves and others."-Gina Webb, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Pineda''s account of his sister''s cheerleading and overnight transformation makes for a powerful survey of the impact of tragedy on a young boy''s coming of age in this outstanding, vivid family memoir." -Diane C. Donovan, California Bookwatch, "Jon Pineda turns a simmering lens on his tween and teen years as his family, splintered and stoic, copes with the aftermath of his sister's incapacitation and demise. In Sleep in Me , Pineda explores, rather than resolves, whether such trauma made him stronger or simply more attuned to heartbreak."-Lisa Romeo, Foreword, " Sleep in Me is a sharp portrait of place, culture, and growing up male and confused in weird America while at the same time being a tender elegy for those lost. Written with the intimacy and immediacy of a diary and the attention to language and sound of a prose poem, this is a superlative and heartfelt memoir by an excellent new writer."-Greg Bottoms, author of Fight Scenes and Angelhead: My Brother's Descent into Madness, "[Pineda's muted, lyrical messages, to be savored at length, remind us of the value of listening deeply, to ourselves and others."-Gina Webb, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Jon Pineda turns a simmering lens on his tween and teen years as his family, splintered and stoic, copes with the aftermath of his sister''s incapacitation and demise. InSleep in Me, Pineda explores, rather than resolves, whether such trauma made him stronger or simply more attuned to heartbreak."-Lisa Romeo,Foreword, "Sleep in Meis essentially pure rendered memory, a book that can be taken down from the shelf and opened to any chapter, any moment however random and fleeting, and can make us feel the grand weight of tragedy, and the victory when we fight it."Noah Renn,Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star, " Sleep in Me is essentially pure rendered memory, a book that can be taken down from the shelf and opened to any chapter, any moment however random and fleeting, and can make us feel the grand weight of tragedy, and the victory when we fight it."Noah Renn, Virginian-Pilot

Dewey Decimal811/.6 B

Table Of ContentAcknowledgments I. Learning the Language Beneath the Surface An Almost Perfect Circle Slider First Time The Clothespin Punker Altar Boys Spirit II. An Endless Retelling My Father, in Some Small Corner of Memory Translucent Diorama An Entire Life Story, Instead of a Loaf of Bread The First Dream A Collective Forgetting Yellow Human Chain Sleep Great Bridge This Same Expression The Object of My Affection III. The Unknowable Future Brutal Pupil Almost Morning The Other Boy Suspension of Disbelief Birthmark Hello Again Flat Bottom The Painting Waiting for Sentences Short Life IV. Silver Plastic Suit The Idea of Weight Dog Pensacola, by Way of New Orleans Promises Everything and Nothing Just in Case Return V. The Sky The Wrong Bus Homecoming Ritual Another Homecoming Old Nags Head Road

SynopsisAgainst the backdrop of his teenage sister's car accident in which a dump truck filled with sand slammed into the small car carrying her and her friends, Jon Pineda chronicles his sister Rica's sudden transformation from a vibrant high school cheerleader to a girl wheelchair bound and unable to talk. Sleep in Me is a heartrending memoir of the coming-of-age of a boy haunted by a family tragedy., Against the backdrop of his teenage sister's car accident--in which a dump truck filled with sand slammed into the small car carrying her and her friends--Jon Pineda chronicles his sister Rica's sudden transformation from a vibrant high school cheerleader to a girl wheelchair bound and unable to talk. For the next five years of her life, her only ability to communicate was through her rudimentary use of sign language. Lyrical in its approach and unflinching in its honesty, Sleep in Me is a heartrending memoir of the coming-of-age of a boy haunted by a family tragedy. A prize-winning poet's account of the irreparable damage and the new understanding that tragedy brings to his Filipino American family, Pineda's book is a remarkable story maneuvering between childhood memories of his sister cheerleading and moments of monitoring her in a coma and changing her adult diapers. Pineda adeptly navigates between these moments of idyllic youth and heartbreaking sadness. Vivid and lyrical, his story is an exploration of what it means to live deeply with tragedy and of the impact such a story can have on a boy's journey to manhood.

LC Classification NumberPS3616.I565Z46 2010