Hi Everyone,
Even though fiction is not really my thing, I read, Requiem For A Dream, by Hubert Shelby Jr., and I highly recommend it. This is why.
While I read, Beautiful Boy, by David Sheff, he mentioned that when he and his son, Nic, watched the movie, Requiem For A Dream, Nic told him that he related the to the character, Harry the most. Harry is a heroin addict, and his mother is addicted to diet pills. Nic also said that the music made him want to do drugs. For anyone who is interested all I wanted to do was give myself a manicure, which I did. Anyway….
After a quick online search, I discovered that the movie was based on a book. My decision to read the book was based on the storyline of another book written years after, Requiem For A Dream. Both are fiction, include four characters, each with their own addiction. I will keep the title to myself until I reread it and post a blog.
Some of the reasons I really enjoyed, Requiem For A Dream, is that it is timeless. It is real. It is accurate. And that should scare the crap out of a lot of people. But it probably won’t. This is what I mean.
Sara Goldfarb, is the mother of Harry, the heroin addict. She knows her son is going to pawn her TV because he has pawned it a lot. Actually, everyone knows that Harry pawns his mother’s TV on a regular basis. But the only person who says anything to Sara is the man at the pawn shop and he is the only person who has something to lose. He buys the TV from Harry at a discount and sells it back to his mother Sara for a premium a few hours later. Everyone else remains silent—about a lot of things. Not one of Sara’s friends confronts her, or at the very least, talks to her about her son, her addiction, her constant calls to the TV people, or her growing paranoia or delusions. Sara who is clearly depressed is left to her own devices by the people who say they love her and it does not end well.
Harry, Sara’s son, his friend Tyrone C. Love and Marion Silver, Harry’s girlfriend are young. Their limited use of drugs, leads them to believe that they will never get addicted, or as they say become a dope fiend. They think that they have the world by its tail until they are looking at its asshole. Each of them lowers their already low standards in order to do anything and everything to get more heroin, a drug they never thought they would be addicted to but are. Hubert Selby Jr., does an excellent job describing the lengths and the locations that Harry, Tyrone C., and Marion go to get their fix. You don’t have to do drugs to believe, or understand how the process works or how an addiction to drugs will drive people to do things they never thought they would.
And that is why I really enjoyed this very sad, timeless, real and accurate fictional story of four people. They, like so many others, really think everything is going to be okay even though the consequences of their poor decisions are glaring them and everyone around them in the face. And no one says anything—ever.
Requiem For A Dream, by Hubert Shelby Jr., is an excellent book. It reminds us that we are not invincible, that each decision has at least one consequence and we reap what we sow no matter how smart, intelligent or clever we want to believe we are.
The year is still young and we are only as old as we feel. Chase your dreams while you still can!
Thank you for reading, A. Rebel’s Rant! ;D
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