Playing with Boys: A Novel Review

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Playing with Boys: A Novel ReviewAlisa Valdes-Rodriguez cornered the Latina chick-lit market with her debut, "The Dirty Girls Social Club." But she hits the sophomore slump in "Playing With Boys," an overstretched story about defying the cliches that dog Hispanic women. It's a good idea, just not executed well.
Alexis Lopez is a slightly overweight talent agent, with a nasty "gangsta" boyfriend and a longing to break Meximericans into the spotlight. She finds her possible breakout star in Marcella Gauthier Bosch, a stunning rich wild child who wants to be a serious actress, but keeps getting offered roles as "maids" and "crack whores."
As Alexis struggles to find Marcella an outstanding role with no jiggle, she encounters Olivia. Olivia is a dowdy, traumatized young mom, with a crumbling marriage. But she's also written the brilliant "Soledad," a screenplay that chronicles her mother's life -- the perfect vehicle for Marcella. All three women struggle to bring "Soledad" to the screen, and struggle just as hard to deal with their delicate relationships with men...
At first glance, this sounds like a feisty romp, with three very different Latinas plotting to challenge the behemoth that is Hollywood. It's a cool idea, and one ripe to be explored. Unfortunately, Valdes-Rodriguez doesn't give it everything it needs to really bloom. There's too much book here for too little plot -- it putters out about halfway through the book, and just sort of limps to a finale.
This is probably the only book I've ever read where the women think about sex about fifty times more often than the men. In fact, at times it seems to be all the women think about -- even the joyless Olivia checks out porn. If Valdes-Rodriguez wants to portray Hispanic women in a uncliched light, she might want to avoid that. Her writing is solid enough, with looks at the different lifestyles and social positions of L.A., with a look at how hard it is to get a stereotype-free role in Hollywood if you aren't a blonde Caucasian.
While Valdes-Rodriguez succeeds in making three radically different women, only one of them is really likable. Olivia is as faded as her sneakers -- she doesn't register a single emotion you can identify with. Marcella is a little too insistently wild and decadent, not to mention bitter. The ultra-nice Alexis is much more likable, with her seemingly hopeless love for a sexy Cuban rapper and body image problems.
Valdes-Rodriguez had a good idea, just not the characters and plot to flesh it out. "Playing with Boys" is a dullish, overstretched slice of chick-lit, without much to make it come to life.Playing with Boys: A Novel Overview

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