Ok read. Nothing spectacular about this book. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the arc of this book in return for my honest review. Receiving the book in this manner had no bearing on this review.

Graffiti Palace takes the story-line of the Odyssey and places it in the Watts riots in 1965. The main character, Americo Monk (think Thelonious?), is an “urban graphologist and graffiti semiotician” who studies graffiti as a means of understanding the city from the perspective of the street. The novel starts with him out collecting graffiti images by copying them in his notebook when the riots erupt, cutting him off from his apartment, where his girlfriend, Karmann, is throwing a rent party. Monk works his way back through the riots, finding himself pursued by several groups who want to get their hands on his notebook. True to the Odyssey, Monk finds the journey is directing him rather than him directing his journey. There’s a sense that a wave of chaos has taken over and something else is in control of his journey. Lombardo has built layers into his novel, with so many interesting pieces that could be explored further, such as graffiti semiotics, parallels between the racial tensions and contemporary events. The Watts riots are a historical cultural event ripe for further exploration, and my interest is piqued.

I admit I was intrigued by Graffiti Palace as soon as I saw the cover and read the blurb. I have an interest in stories involving race problematics and I have to admit I don't know much about the era this story is set in other than just the bare details. I was looking forward to exploring this setting as well as learning more about this particular situation and find out how the graffiti element fits in. Sadly, it didn't turn out to be the reading experience I thought it would be. I've tried several times over the last two weeks to start reading Graffiti Palace, but unfortunately I have been struggling with it right from the very first page. The main thing that stood out for me was the writing style, which simply wasn't for me. It felt confusing, chaotic, haltering... And it simply made it hard to make sense of it all. Some might call it literary fiction, colorful and exuberant prose, but the sad hard facts are that I personally found it a constant struggle to reach the end of each page. The endless descriptions of just about every little tiny detail didn't help warming up to the story either... Don't get me wrong, I love a good detailed description in a story, but this was just way too much unrelevant details and too little focus on a possible plot itself. The parts where Monk wandered around the city were slightly better in the sense there were less descriptions and more 'action', but whenever Karmann's POV popped up the pace slowed down to an almost full stop. Monk's character has a lot of potential, I stil like the idea of the graffiti and what the art stands for and the potential of the riots and the race problematics being represented by the different groups that form part of the community. Graffiti Palace had all the potential to blow me away, but instead I was left struggling and feeling confused about it all. I really tried to continue reading to see if things would improve, but I had to give up when I reached the halfway mark and couldn't see things getting better. I just felt this story was trying to hard to stand out and the writing style and descriptions too unlikeable and hard to read to be called lush and wonderful. I'm guessing the right person will most likely enjoy this story significantly better than I did, but I do believe this Graffiti Palace is not for everyone. I'm still sad I had to make the decision to DNF though.

Graffiti Palace by A. G. Lombardo is Homer’s Odyssey relived through the streets of LA during the 1965 Watt riots. Monk, self-proclaimed “urbanologist” documents the streets by “collecting” graffiti and transferring it into his notebook. He understands the complex underground mazes and workings of the different gangs via the markings they leave on the walls. His journey home to his girlfriend Karmann, through the riots, is part real world, part mythical, laden with intense imagery. He meets members of the Fruit of Islam, killer bees, Mexican gang members, Voodooiennes and many more, while moving slowly back towards his home created with containers where his girlfriend and future child are waiting for him.

All in all I enjoyed the novel. The language doesn’t always flow very well, extremely bloated with imagery at times (especially at the beginning). While actually very beautiful in parts it’s sometimes too much, too overpowering and takes away from the flow of the narrative. I do think this probably was done on purpose, because it meshes well with Monk’s incredible journey through the streets. The attention to detail in the novel is amazing, from the tiny street altars to the intricate details of the pest control man’s food, everything is accounted for and symbolic. So basically what I am trying to say that if you are looking for a lazy Sunday afternoon read then this is not going to work for you. However if you don’t mind delving into a deep pool of words for a while you will be fine. I found myself drifting off sometimes and had to come back later to focus again. Some areas could have done with a little more flow and less heavy imagery.

Another thing that I found slightly jarring at first were the clichés that popped up: the black fathers who are all in prison, the tough Mexican woman cooking for the gang leaders, the textbook Chinese opium smoker straight out of a Tintin book, but I kind of think it was done on purpose, in a pulp fiction type of way. It’s like each character, even the minor ones, are larger than life, symbolic.

In the end I couldn’t put Graffiti Palace down. It took me about a fifth of the book to really get into it, and for the flow to start making sense, but once it did I couldn’t stop. I am actually still running through it in my head, but the images are Marvel comic book images (this is NOT a bad thing, the author had the ability to really create a movie in my mind which is brilliant), and I am Monk Americo, jumping undercover from street to street, discovering all of the secrets that hide beneath strokes of spray paint and bordered up houses, bumping into icons, symbolic messengers, and encountering auspicious signs along the way. And the entire novel focuses on an important part of modern history, a semiotic study of the area in the 60’s, but also of the US as a whole. Uprising, revolution, riot, and a symbolic journey peppered with signs, stories, and people back home.

Graffiti Palace will be released on March 13th, 2018 through Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy!