I got to be honest... I didn't quite know what to make of the ending of Taking Sides. I am to assume that the "side" Lincoln took was with his old classmates and his "Latino heritage." Although strangely enough I don't think this could have been done without the help of his mom's white boyfriend (who also happened to have gone to Franklin). It all seemed very tepid and I don't feel like Soto went very deep. And more importantly-- nothing really happened!
I guess some of my frusteration is how black-and-white these two communities were portrayed in terms of differences. Which may make sense from Lincoln's perspective. But for some reason I don't believe that all the kids at Columbus at "stone ground crackers with brie." I guess what I would have liked to have seen from Linc, or Soto, was Lincoln being able to take some things from his new life and new school instead of immediately dismissing everything as "not him" and worse. Even Monica wasn't necessarily portrayed as a better aspect in his new life. Also when James had him over for dinner. His family was very nice to him. But all Soto/Linc kept mentioning was the venison.
In a lot of ways this story had elements that were similar to Everybody Loves Chris, in terms of issues with race, identity, socio-economics, friendship, family. But I feel like a show like Everybody Loves Chris is able to take the bad with the good when going to a (mostly) all white school.
I do agree that the book just ended, but maybe because we just wanted more for the character (Lincoln). Also, maybe Gary Soto wanted his readers to think about how they would end the story or change it since it is geared toward young adloescent (Hispanic).
ReplyDeleteI realize that you wanted LIncloln to take more things from new neighborhood and new school,but he did in hinsight. He realized that living in the nice new neighborhood and school was not for him! The reality is that majority of kids that live in the "Barrio" find it real diffuclt to live in white neighborhoods. They find it difficult because first all, they do not have the right clothing ( Nike and Addidas shoes, Hurley shirts and etc...) so they feel inadequate. They already feel inadequate because they are not "white"! These kids do not have all the resources as their counter parts such as the opportunity to play sports, tutors, and extra activities because they lack the funds. It it not all black and white; there are a lot of things to consider, and I did not even touch on the food, emotional, physical aspects. Caroline
I agree the ending was somewhat anticlimactic and could have been a little deeper. What I took away from the reading was Lincoln’s character finding acceptance with parts of his life. He accepted that his ex-girlfriend Vicky, had a new boyfriend and his mother’s white boyfriend Roy, could play a part in his life. The biggest epiphany Lincoln had allowed him to become more secure and comfortable with his identity. He is Latino, from the Mission District and these aspects will always be a part of him and can never be taken away. For Lincoln, going to a predominantly white school, living in the suburbs, and being the only Latino on a basketball team would not define who he was. Perhaps Soto should have continued the story for another chapter or two and shown Lincoln with this new realization accepting more things from his new environment.
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ReplyDeleteI agree that at the end of the book, Lincoln seemed more comfortable with his identity. When the Columbus coach finally put him in the game, Lincoln went out onto the court and played for himself--rather than for Columbus or against Franklin. I had the feeling that Lincoln was on the verge of becoming a happier guy than he was during the months of his life depicted in Taking Sides.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I understand why Soto chose to have Lincoln move from the Mission to the Peninsula, I felt bothered throughout the entire book by the fact that, in reality, the game between "Franklin" and "Columbus" would never have happened. I kept wondering whether Soto had researched San Francisco public middle school sports and decided to ignore the fact that San Francisco teams do not play Peninsula teams or whether he never actually researched it. It would have been more realistic for Lincoln to have moved to a more affluent neighborhood in San Francisco and to have transferred to a middle school that reflected the demographics of his new neighborhood. Those teams actually would have played against each other. I was also bothered by the fact that Soto wrote that Lincoln was the only Hispanic player to make All-City. Individuals do not make All-City in San Francisco middle school basketball. The entire team works its way up to the All-City playoffs through its win-loss record in the regular season. Lincoln's entire team would have made All-City. I looked at the CIF website to see whether things had changed over the past twenty years and I don't think they have. These inaccuracies made me wonder whether Soto had checked the facts about San Francisco middle school sports and decided to disregard them, assuming that most readers wouldn't know or care, or whether he had not checked them at all.
Yeah, the ending seemed very anti-climatic to me but I think Linc had figured out his identiy during the basketball game. He came to a realization that living in his new neighborhood doesn't channge who he is; "a brown... poor... city" kid. He understood that he is "a franklin boy beneath a Columbus uniform." Although he did not like his new neighborhood and school, I think he realized he could deal with it by his thinking he could talk Tony back into friendship then get a slurpee with James after the game. I thought he was finally going to begin settling into his new environment when the book ended.
ReplyDeleteWhen I came to the end of "Taking Sides," I assumed that Lincoln was on the verge of feeling better about going to Columbus and living in the suburbs. Not so! In the sequel, "Pacific Crossing," we learn that before the Fall semester had even ended, Lincoln was moody, not doing his homework, playing music so loudly that neighbors were complaining, and getting into fights at Columbus. By January, Lincoln and his mom had moved back to San Francisco (although to a neighborhood other than the Mission) and Lincoln was back at Franklin Junior High School!
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