by David Valdes Greenwood
Da Capo Press, Copyright 2007.
178 pages, ISBN 9780738211220
Rating: 4/5
Holiday Appeal: 5/5
Challenges: 2010 Holiday Reading Challenge and GLBT Challenge 2010
Quote from the book: "I liked his rich red suit, the idea of a flying sleigh, all those adorable reindeer, and the elves, who seemed so light in their pointed loafers."
Giveaway Details: This is my 100th post. In celebration I'm offering a free copy of A Little Fruitcake to a reader chosen at random. Just leave a comment no later than December 5 and include your email address (if it's not on your profile), International readers may enter too.
Do you have a holiday book that you like to re-read every year? For me it's A Little Fruitcake by David Valdes Greenwood. This is David's look back to growing up in the 1970's and his family Christmas celebrations. There are twelve stories here presented in chronological order.
In this boyhood holiday memoir the gift of choice under the tree is "sleek, white, lace-up figure skates," just like Dorothy Hamill's, instead of black hockey skates.
You see, David is a gay man although the book jacket and description makes no mention of this. And the book doesn't either because when you're a kid the labels haven't stuck yet. You just know you're different.
This is a book and a life I can relate to. When David asks for a baby doll in front of his family, it's a conversation show stopper in his Seventh Day Adventist household. I remember making the same wish much to the refusal of my dad. The most I could hope for was G.I. Joe. I wanted Ken.
A Little Fruitcake will put a smile on your face with chapter titles like, Tree Envy and Jealous of Baby Jesus. It may also put a lump in your throat too. Some years money is tight. David grows up in a single parent household with his brother and mom in Maine. It's a big transition from Miami where he lived in Little Havana.
If you're tired of reading the traditional holiday childhood memoir, slice out the fruitcake and give yourself an alternative treat.
(For more information visit David Valdes Greenwood's website).
