Growing up in Spanish Harlem, Chino knew he needed three things to survive: a solid friend (his pana), a decent nickname--not some lame thing his parents had called him, like Tito or Googie--and a reputation that he would rather lose a tooth or get his ribs broken than back out of a fight. With the help of Sapo, "the meanest and ugliest kid on the block," Chino manages to make it as far as college before his life is endangered. He even attracts the attention of Nancy Saldivia, a beautiful Pentecostal girl so genuinely devout that she has earned the high school nickname "Blanca." In a typically vivid passage at the start of his debut novel, Bodega Dreams, Ernesto Quiñonez writes: Blanca wasn't allowed to wear jeans but she made up for it by wearing tight, short skirts. She always carried a Bible with her and never talked bad about anybody and at school she only hung around with her Pentecostal friend, Lucy. Lucy was a hairy girl who never shaved her legs because it was against her religion. Blanca had hairy legs as well, but Lucy's legs were so hairy that everyone called her Chewbacca.... When the cruelty toward Lucy became too much for Blanca, she'd punish the boys by being the coldest, most serious person in school. Only Blanca could get away with this because she had an angelic face that almost made you want to sing Alleluia. Made you want to pick up a tambourine and join her one night in her church. Make a joyful noise to the Lord so she would begin to jump up and down to all that religious salsa. And maybe you'd be lucky enough to cop a cheap feel as the Holy Ghost took over her body. Our narrator's luck is running out, though, and when Sapo introduces him to the mysterious, powerful Willie Bodega, Chino finds himself helplessly drawn into a criminal network. Even if Chino and Sapo's world is far from your own, you can't help but succumb to Quiñonez's funny, rapid-fire prose and his uncanny gift for dialect. The author's dead-on renderings of verbal tics and rhythms fit seamlessly into his depiction of the vibrant culture of East Harlem. Bodega Dreams is an unusually accomplished debut with all the right ingredients: distinctive characters, a troubling plot, and a seductive voice. --Regina Marler


From Publishers Weekly
Praise the lord and pass the hooch: this galvanizing debut is the novel East Harlem has been waiting for since the days of the Young Lords. Quinonez has a poet's ear for the barrio's Spanglish rhythms and idioms, a brujo's gift for describing its alma, and an intense, unrelenting streetwise energy. The book features a cast of memorable characters, including dim-witted Neno, who can't complete a sentence without quoting a song lyric; the nefarious barrio lawyer Nazario; the drug runner and possible hitman Sapo, who would rather be flying a kite from the top of a tenement; and cameo appearances by many real artists and poets. But at the heart of everything is Willie Bodega, a former Young Lord who has become the biggest drug lord of them all. Bodega is also one of the most visionary and magnanimous characters in contemporary fiction. He hands out money for tuition, rent, whatever anyone needs--asking only loyalty in return. Bodega has a dream of what Spanish Harlem could become, and no scruples at all about how the money to fuel his dream is acquired. "We were all insignificant," says Chino, the narrator, "dwarfed by what his dream meant." Chino is an artist who can wax positively lyrical when he is not trading hilarious banter. The plot is basic noir--the fall of an anti-hero--but it is wrapped with a glittering array of scams and schemes that keep it all hopping. Both dreams and realities are compellingly and coolly styled by this exciting new author, and the very few first novel faux pas don't much distract from his insightful and significant achievement. Agent, Gloria Loomis. Author tour. (Mar.) FYI: Quinonez was named one of the Village Voice's 1999 Writers on the Verge. Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From School Library Journal
YA-Willie Bodega, a man of middle years, heads a syndicate that organizes the economics, justice system, and politics in Spanish Harlem. He works toward his dream of creating a rising professional class of Puerto Rican citizens with the aid of a tiny cadre of powerful, ultimately traitorous, friends. Using the voice of a barely post-adolescent youth to tell the tale of Willie's undoing, Qui-onez gives readers pitch-perfect characterizations, crisp dialogue, and plenty of action. Chino is newly married to a pregnant Pentecostalist who holds herself above barrio politics. He and his wife attend night school, work, and struggle to pay the rent. Chino's wild boyhood friend introduces him to Bodega, in a roundabout way, and against all of his better instincts, Chino begins to work for Bodega, dreams with him, and, in the end, takes his place. Realism and romantic adventurism are neatly bonded here, making this a book for eager and reluctant readers alike. In a market that is short on Latino novels of literary merit, this one stands out and demands attention from readers from all cultural backgrounds.Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Chino, caught in a squeeze play between devotion to his pregnant Pentecostal wife and beholden to the barrio ringleader Bodega, evokes an inner-city scenario of mayhem and murder. Despite his drug-pushing wheeling-dealing, Bodega idealistically wants to improve the living conditions of Spanish Harlem; though his life is truncated, his dream doesn't die. Running throughout the novel is the motif of appearances: characters assume different identities, and the denouement twist catches the reader off guard. Qui?onez writes with cinematographic detail of life in the ghetto and very graphically reproduces the rough language of the street. Despite its film noir approach, tinges of humor often offset the bleakness; one character, for example, interjects snippets of popular songs into his speech. Recommended primarily for urban libraries and those with sizable Puerto Rican constituents.-Lawrence Olszewski, OCLC Lib., Dublin, OH Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


The New York Times Book Review, Maud Casey
No simple morality tale, Bodega Dreams is a stark evocation of life in the projects of El Barrio, the "mammoth filing cabinets of human lives," from the keen perspective of someone who has one foot out the door yet who is homesick already.


Review
"Rich with eye-opening detail, [this is] a lively and entertaining work by a young writer whose talents are deserving of a wide readership."  -Oscar Hijuelos


Review
"Rich with eye-opening detail, [this is] a lively and entertaining work by a young writer whose talents are deserving of a wide readership."  -Oscar Hijuelos


Book Description
"A new and authentic voice of the urban Latino experience." --Esmeralda Santiago, author of When I Was Puerto Rican

In a stunning narrative combining the gritty rhythms of Junot Diaz with the noir genius of Walter Mosley, Bodega Dreams announces the arrival of a writer who The Village Voice has already hailed as "a Writer on the Verge."

The word is out in Spanish Harlem: Willy Bodega is king. Need college tuition for your daughter? Start-up funds for your fruit stand? Bodega can help. He gives everyone a leg up, in exchange only for loyalty--and a steady income from the drugs he pushes.

Lyric, inspired, and darkly funny, this powerful debut novel brilliantly evokes the trial of Chino, a smart, promising young man to whom Bodega turns for a favor. Chino is drawn to Bodega's street-smart idealism, but soon finds himself over his head, navigating an underworld of switchblade tempers, turncoat morality, and murder.




From the Inside Flap
"A new and authentic voice of the urban Latino experience." --Esmeralda Santiago, author of When I Was Puerto Rican

In a stunning narrative combining the gritty rhythms of Junot Diaz with the noir  genius of Walter Mosley, Bodega Dreams announces the arrival of a writer who The Village Voice has already hailed as "a Writer on the Verge."

The word is out in Spanish Harlem: Willy Bodega is king.  Need college tuition for your daughter?  Start-up funds for your fruit stand?  Bodega can help.  He gives everyone a leg up, in exchange only for loyalty--and a steady income from the drugs he pushes.

Lyric, inspired, and darkly funny, this powerful debut novel brilliantly evokes the trial of Chino, a smart, promising young man to whom Bodega turns for a favor.  Chino is drawn to Bodega's street-smart idealism, but soon finds himself over his head, navigating an underworld of switchblade tempers, turncoat morality, and murder.


From the Back Cover
"Rich with eye-opening detail, [this is] a lively and entertaining work by a young writer whose talents are deserving of a wide readership." -Oscar Hijuelos


About the Author
Ernesto Quiñonez lives in New York City.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"A new and authentic voice of the urban Latino experience." —Esmeralda Santiago, author of When I Was Puerto Rican

In a stunning narrative combining the gritty rhythms of Junot Diaz with the noir genius of Walter Mosley, Bodega Dreams announces the arrival of a writer who The Village Voice has already hailed as "a Writer on the Verge."

The word is out in Spanish Harlem: Willy Bodega is king. Need college tuition for your daughter? Start-up funds for your fruit stand? Bodega can help. He gives everyone a leg up, in exchange only for loyalty—and a steady income from the drugs he pushes.

Lyric, inspired, and darkly funny, this powerful debut novel brilliantly evokes the trial of Chino, a smart, promising young man to whom Bodega turns for a favor. Chino is drawn to Bodega's street-smart idealism, but soon finds himself over his head, navigating an underworld of switchblade tempers, turncoat morality, and murder.

FROM THE CRITICS

KLIATT

Although most of his friends succumb to the vices of street life in the ghetto, like William Bodega, Chino dreams of a better future. Therefore, Chino goes to college, while Bodega becomes the most successful slumlord in East Harlem. Their paths cross when Nazaro, Bodega's lawyer, needs Chino's help finding Bodega's lost love, the one he built his success to impress. Chino is so mesmerized by Bodega's dream of building a professional Latino class and a real estate empire that his vision gets clouded. Instead of remaining true to himself, he succumbs to Nazaro's schemes, only to end up his pawn. Chino discovers that although Bodega's crooked plan for political, social, and economic changes fails, the purity of his dream lives on. Quinonez captures more than just the loss of innocence in this novel, he captures the true flavor of the Latin world in Spanish Harlem. From ethnic food, colloquialisms and crude street-talk, to "Spanglish," evangelical religion, and salsa music, this story pulses with the rhythm of a Latin people dancing on Anglo soil. Furthermore, Quinonez's gripping story sparkles with metaphors so brilliant and tangible that the reader will be absorbed from beginning to end. KLIATT Codes: SA*—Exceptional book, recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2000, Random House/Vintage, 212p, 21cm, 99-33380, $12.00. Ages 16 to adult. Reviewer: Claire M. Dignan; El Centro del Cardenal School, Boston, MA, September 2000 (Vol. 34 No. 5)

Library Journal

Chino, caught in a squeeze play between devotion to his pregnant Pentecostal wife and beholden to the barrio ringleader Bodega, evokes an inner-city scenario of mayhem and murder. Despite his drug-pushing wheeling-dealing, Bodega idealistically wants to improve the living conditions of Spanish Harlem; though his life is truncated, his dream doesn't die. Running throughout the novel is the motif of appearances: characters assume different identities, and the denouement twist catches the reader off guard. Qui onez writes with cinematographic detail of life in the ghetto and very graphically reproduces the rough language of the street. Despite its film noir approach, tinges of humor often offset the bleakness; one character, for example, interjects snippets of popular songs into his speech. Recommended primarily for urban libraries and those with sizable Puerto Rican constituents.--Lawrence Olszewski, OCLC Lib., Dublin, OH Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

YA-Willie Bodega, a man of middle years, heads a syndicate that organizes the economics, justice system, and politics in Spanish Harlem. He works toward his dream of creating a rising professional class of Puerto Rican citizens with the aid of a tiny cadre of powerful, ultimately traitorous, friends. Using the voice of a barely post-adolescent youth to tell the tale of Willie's undoing, Qui-onez gives readers pitch-perfect characterizations, crisp dialogue, and plenty of action. Chino is newly married to a pregnant Pentecostalist who holds herself above barrio politics. He and his wife attend night school, work, and struggle to pay the rent. Chino's wild boyhood friend introduces him to Bodega, in a roundabout way, and against all of his better instincts, Chino begins to work for Bodega, dreams with him, and, in the end, takes his place. Realism and romantic adventurism are neatly bonded here, making this a book for eager and reluctant readers alike. In a market that is short on Latino novels of literary merit, this one stands out and demands attention from readers from all cultural backgrounds.-Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

Ed Morales - The Voice Literary Supplement

Bodega is a snappy roman ￯﾿ﾽ clef in which Chino, the narrator and Quino￯﾿ﾽez's alter ego, grapples with the pervasive criminal code of the street and his own attempts to make a family...The most ingenious thing about La Bodega Sold Dreams is the way it codifies much of the East Harlem experience, with its Young Lords legends, Santeria rituals, and bilingual bards. Like Junot Diaz and Abraham Rodriguez, Quino￯﾿ﾽez is helping to establish Spanglish as a new-millennium urban language.

Mark Rozzo - The Los Angeles Times