The Insatiable Spiderman - Pedro Juan Gutierrez

"He doesn't like your books."

"Ahhh..."

"He says that they're indecent."

Years ago, I'd read "Dirty Havana Trilogy" of Pedro Juan Gutierrez. I distinctly remembered the overdose of sex and filthy writing about sex through out that book, Presented as the Havana neighborhood in its actual glory of poverty , of desire, of sex and the alcohol in its true colors, the book caught the attention of the worldwide readers, despite the overdose of all that was said above. The instiable spiderman, is the return of the old theme with the same protagonist , his own alter ego, Pedro Juan.

Now living a simple life( after being removed from hs job as a journalist) amongst few novels in publication and his other interests of women and painting, 50 year old Pedro Juan is doubting whether he is loosing his interest in life. His relation with his wife is in the decline ( he can not bring himself to kiss her, let alone having a nice time with her). Reminiscing in his attic, during the day while his wife is away at the Pizza joint to work ( because that pays more than her qualification as a microbiologist), the lonely writer, painter have the memories of his earlier adventures ( especially with women) in his company. Between alcohol , cigarette and ogling the enormous rear of black women, he doubts himself of his capabilities as a man. The person whom he confides his issues re-assure him that this is natural at this age, but he himself managed to retain his potent until 76 years. Spending his time between his unsatisfactory wife and his gossipy mother( as he often visits her) while not writing or painting, Pedro Juan , reflects on the present day Havana and its poor/middle class population.

This is not a plot driven novel, nor it has any pretense of a mega novel of Cuban existence. The 160 pages of fantasy , desire and sex - despite the claim of 'slice of Cuban Life' , does not really impress you. Various caricatures of people who make a short visit in the novel are interesting, but they are all peripheral to the central character and his general boredom with life. The possibilities of sex is everywhere. Book starts with a rape scene in NY, there are orgies in the park, a quicky round the corner, prostitutes, every second person he meets in the way had some relation with him in the past ( some for 3 years, some much longer and some for a few hours), there are visiting expatriates, people who come to Havana from other part of Caribbean looking for rum and dance, masturbation and whole lot of dreaming all associated with sex. To the "Insatiable Spiderman' who is on prowl through the streets of Havana, every thing revolve around the possibility of sex and desire. Sex is substitute to every thing. In a society under oppression, a society living in constant poverty and moral degeneration, sex , alcohol and dancing are the ways of bringing out the hidden anger and anxiety in public.

"Don't be stupid. Wake up, you're in Cuba. The poverty we've got now will be the same in twenty years, in thirty years. This chit doesn't ever get sorted out."

I'm not a great fan of filthy writing, which is abundant in this book, may be a little lesser extent to "Dirty Havana Trilogy" (Dirty Havana Trilogy was much more complete that this as a book). However, whenever he is out of these area of filthy writing, we see a brilliant writer trying to show his mettle. There are many fantastically written paragraphs at many places, which leaves one bewildered, on why hasn't he used this capability to some better effect.

"..bacause you are looking to shock and you are boring. You always write about the same shit, about poverty and crap like that."

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The Insatiable Spiderman (2002)

Pedro Juan Gutierrez ( translated from Spanish by John King in 2005)

Faber and Faber

163 Pages
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Independent

Singing from the Well - Reinaldo Arenas

"There went my mother, she just went running out the door. She was screaming like a crazy woman that she was going to jump down the well. I see my mother at the bottom of the well. I see her floating in the greenish water choked with leaves. So I run for the yard, out to where the well is, that's fenced around with a wellhead of naked-boy saplings so rickety it's almost falling in."

thus starts this wonderful novel by Reinaldo Arenas. Arenas has been in the news for some time after his five day long voyage escapade from Cuba after being prisoned, tortured and abused by the regime. Arenas committed suicide , unable to fight AIDS leaving behind one of the best 'suicide notes' I have ever read. True to the image which I had about this author, this novel, the first of the Pentagonia series ( 'secret history of Cuba', according to the author) depicts a boys life during the pre-revolution days.

Plot consists of the boy and his family ( mother, grand mother , grand father and an aunt) living in poverty under anarchy, isolated from the society. They continuously fought, abused and cursed at each other, often getting into murderous thoughts. The boy constantly live with a hope of murdering his grand father who beat him up regularly and 'split his skull by half' using the hatchet. Grand mother is no different showering him with abuse and anger. Mother, a silent sufferer, blames the boy for his indifference to her struggle and for her misfortune. We understand from the boy that his father had returned to his in-laws one day leaving his mother to their custody, never to return ( he did not look back, even once ). To this scene comes Celestino, a cousin, after his mother ( the boys aunt) committed suicide by hanging, and burning herself. Celestino's arrival only worsened the situation. The already fragile relationship had become worse, but the young boys soon become friends. Young Celestino, scribbled poems on the tree trunks, only to be cut down by the grand father. He then turned to the pineapple leaves, scribbling away, only to face the same fate. The novel concludes with a Christmas Party when the extended family of aunts, cousins ( interestingly no men apart from the grandfather), the dead cousins, the witches and aunts all adding up to the chaos and destruction.

Poignant, lyrical and moving, frustrating at the same time, the prose of Arenas is outstandingly refreshing and clear. While the subject is of pre-revolutionary Cuba and most of the characters are allegory of the republic itself, his writing has maintained an high energy and is brave.

Structurily, he experiments with various forms.. Reality and fantasy are intermixed and at times it is very demanding on the reader. Towards the end, the story is through dialogues ( as in plays). There are pages at odd places with verses taken from different sources ( presumably, scribbled by Celestino on tree trunks). Half way through the book comes to "THE END" , but continuing further gets you the "THE SECOND END" , until the "LAST END". I am not sure, why this ploy as there is no real end or change of course anywhere. Arguably, Celestino himself could be an alter ego of the boy. Celestino never speaks to anyone but to the Boy, never reacts to the beatings or torments, and is referred as dead many a times in the narrative.

Overall a fantastic reading experience.

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Singing From the Well ( 1965)

Reinaldo Arenas ( translated from Spanish by Andrew Hurley )

Penguin Books

206 Pages
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Obituary, Article on Arenas at Moorewatch