Bibliophiles of the internet, my name's Adriana and today I want to talk to you about
"Signal to Noise" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.
I read this in September for Hispanic Heritage Month. It's #ownvoices Mexican fiction.
The story is told in chapters that alternate between two different timelines,
the first of which is set in Mexico City in the late 1980's.
It's about this teenager named Meche, who's very unapologetically bold, brash, outspoken,
and strong-willed—and her two misfit friends, Daniela and Sebastian.
But Meche is definitely the self-proclaimed leader of this group,
and she has a very strong, personal connection to music.
One day, Meche and her friends discover that if they play certain records
with a certain kind of strong intent held in their hearts and in their minds that somehow relates to the lyrics,
they can unleash some very unwieldy magic.
The second timeline takes place, again, in Mexico City, in 2009, when Meche has to return home
because her father has passed away. And not only does she have to worry about arranging the funeral,
the novenas, the nightly prayers, but she has to come face-to-face with her estranged family and friends
and she finally has to confront everything, including the magic, that eventually tore them apart.
I wanna start by talking about the magic in this story and its use. To me, it felt very real and organic.
The magic itself is almost enigmatic; it exists everywhere and certain people can tap into it
in so many different ways.
It surfaces for Meche and her friends in records because music itself contains so much latent intent
and meaning, and the repetition of sounds and choruses mimic the act of casting a spell.
There's also the fact that records are round, which is a reference to circles of power.
So in our modern world, they really are the perfect conduits for magic.
The magic itself is not, in any way, precise. And I love that, because it means the characters are blindly
following their instincts and emotional reactions, and they can never REALLY predict the results.
To me, that's a very thoughtful emulation of real life.
And like I said before, the magic is very open-ended. It seems like it surfaces in very personal ways.
We get a little bit from Meche's grandmother who talks about how she had the magic when she was young,
and it became real for her through sewing, and her object of power was a thimble.
So I really respond to this idea that the magic presents itself differently depending on the person.
On a different note, I like that all the characters in this story make *bad* decisions,
but the narrative never condemns them for those choices.
Instead the story centers on the tension that comes from this idea that you have control over the uncontrollable,
and the very distinct slip that happens when that all comes crashing down.
The focus is always on the repercussions of these characters' actions
and whether they can come back from this or not.
Something else I really love and connect with is something I don't think a lot of other readers
are going to love, and that is the fact that these characters are prideful to a fault.
They will not back down, no matter what, no matter how deep they get. To them, admitting fault
or apologizing is the ultimate sign of weakness. Emotionally, they're not in a place where they can see
apologizing as a means of restoring balance. They can only see it as accepting that someone else is right,
which is the worst possible outcome.
And as ugly as that is...
I get that. I've done that.
I mean, the entire story is about what happens when teenagers suddenly have access
to very dangerous, unpredictable power. They're going to use it for petty things. They're going to try and solve
their problems by making more problems, and everything they do is going to make it worse and worse.
That is realistic.
And, to me, what makes this story so engaging, gripping, and unique, is that where other characters
would back down or pull away, these characters just fully commit to fucking everything up.
But the thing is, it's not without reason. It's not without consequence. We do get to see how those choices
play out over time and effect these characters. And that's how the second timeline comes in.
And in regard to that, I just wanna say that the interweaving and blending of these two timelines
has a brilliant effect.
As you see the characters destroying themselves and descending into irreparable hatred on one page,
you also get to follow them as they begin to heal and make amends in their own way on the next.
Structurally, once these characters are broken, they're simultaneously made whole again.
And, narratively, that is entirely its own kind of magic.
Also, as I'm sitting here thinking about it, I do want to mention that this story contains triggers for
attempted sexual assault and molestation. One of the characters does incur homophobic slurs,
both in English and Spanish, and he also does experience a few instances of graphic violence.
So I would say consider that if you're going into this book.
For me, this was a definite five-star read. One of my new favorite books of all time.
I would say you don't have to wait for Hispanic Heritage Month or Halloween/Fall time to come around
to pick this one up, because it is unquestionably an incredible story all year round,
and I highly recommend it.
So those were some of my thoughts on "Signal to Noise" If you have read this book yourself
or if you plan to do so in the future, please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
But that is everything I had for this book review today. Thank you so much for watching this video.
I really hope that you enjoyed it, and I will catch YOU on the flip-side of the page.
Bye!
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