Tag: Sculptor

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews – Hierarchy of Needs: The Sculptor Series Book II by Christa Wojciechowski

Title: Hierarchy of Needs: Sculptor Series Part II
Author: Christa Wojciechowski
Publisher: Christa Wojciechowski
Published: November 15, 2022
Page: 339

Part two of this wildly psychological series on the strength and depths of addiction continues Ona Price’s journey. She returns to the seedy underbelly of the drug scene due to the tragic event that closed book one. Her methadone will soon wear off while confined to the Plaza Hotel with Antoni, Oz, and Dr. Carver if she doesn’t do something fast. As the withdrawal symptoms take over, Ona fears everyone becoming aware of her addiction. She can’t have that and thus sneaks out of the hotel to meet Jojo, who will give her the much-needed dose to tide her over.

A woman who once celebrated Sonia Orlyk’s birthday gliding through her opulent house in a stunning gown soon finds herself hiding out at an apartment in Alphabet City with a group of Puerto Rican drug dealers. She currently shares a residence with four men—Jojo, Fatty, Lobo, Decoy—and Lobo’s mother who prepares the meals. Dazed most days and sleeping until eleven a.m., Ona returns to her toxic schedule.

Now Antoni is combing the streets of Manhattan in search of her.

We get a deeper glimpse into the internal darkness of drug usage from Ona’s and the other characters’ perspectives in book two, which is much more action-packed. Mr. Orlyk is also unhappy about what happened to his wife and intends to exact the most heinous retribution.

However, even though Ona’s circumstances are worse, it is refreshing to observe her in a world apart from the time she spends with Aunt Vee, the methadone clinic, the sculptor, and his estate.

Ona battles her addiction in Oblivion Black from a position of contentment. She believes she is cleaner than she actually is because of the methadone. She is enjoying her job, driving Aunt Vee’s lovely car, and developing feelings for Antoni. She is on the verge of becoming one of the “normies,” or non-drug users, and everything is flowing.

While this might seem like a good thing, it is the challenges we face that develop our character. So, Ona might have been doing well on the surface, but underneath, she was not really facing her addiction.

In Hierarchy of Needs, Ona is forced to confront both her own and other people’s demons when she descends to the bottom and must use all of her might to claw her way to the top. As the stakes rise and the threats multiply, more interesting characters are introduced.

While book two picks off where book one leaves (and it would be better to have read book one), book two is also a journey in itself. And while Ona and Antoni’s romance takes on a lesser role, I liked it because it highlighted the darkness that readers of dark literature may have been hoping for in the first book, which for most of the story, reads like a romance novel.

Once again, the author does a fantastic job illustrating withdrawal and the filthiness of life with addiction. It is poetic the way she weaves Ona’s words together.

“But if I accepted it as my god, if it was a sacrament to give and take of pleasure and pain, doing it would be an offering and getting sick would be sacrifice, and overdose martyrdom. Dealing would be the job of a missionary, to teach the ritual and spread its dichotomic communion. It was a way to worship any god.”

– Ona Price, Hierarchy of Needs

You’ll get chills down your spine and goosebumps on your skin after learning what happens to people who become addicted to the Russian Sleep Experiment.

It. is. wild.

Much of the specifics of book two are predicated on what happened at the end of book one, so I have to leave it here to not spoil it for you. But, if you liked book one, you haven’t seen anything yet. The second book is a wild ride.

(You can read my review for book one here!)

But it’s not over. Christa’s got a part three on the way!

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Ratings:

Plot Movement / Strength: 5/5
Entertainment Factor: 5/5
Characterization: 5/5
Authenticity / Believable: 4/5
Thought Provoking: 5/5
Overall Rating: 5 / 5 stars

Grab Part 2 from Amazon Here.

HierarchyOfNeeds_FrontFINAL

To have your book reviewed on this blog apply here. The registry is open for a limited time.

Stay tuned for our next dope read!

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Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews is a reputable review service that features writers from all over the world, both traditionally and independently published. We are listed on Kindlepreneur as a top-tier book review blog and Reedsy as one of their vetted active book blogs that provide insightful, excellent book reviews.

*Books are read in the order they are received. Be sure to check the queue before booking.

 

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews – Oblivion Black: The Sculptor Book 1 by Christa Wojciechowski

Title: Oblivion Black
Author: Christa Wojciechowski
Publisher: Christa Wojciechowski
Published: August 8, 2022
Page: 387

In this psychological romance, Ona Price nearly dies from a heroin overdose on the streets of Manhattan. As she shoots up in a McDonald’s where she and her Puerto Rican friend Jojo purchased the narcotics, this art school dropout almost kills herself. Fearful of losing her daughter to addiction, Ona’s mom Donna determines she should live with her aunt Vivian or aunt Vee in New Hope.

Ona is required to go there and attend weekly NA meetings in addition to taking daily dosages of the drug methadone to deal with the withdrawals. She gets into a flow but eventually finds her new life and routine mundane, so she looks for work. On her first attempt, she gets hired as the assistant to renowned Russian artist Antoni Azarov, also known as The Hands of God.

Immediately I sensed something was amiss. She got the job too easily, and there is something off about the boss. Azarov appears distant, arrogant, and unkind. A magnificent artist, he fashions clay into the bodies of beautiful women from the models sitting naked before him, creating a gorgeous statue. But, while Ona doesn’t like him at first, his coldness melts as the two soften to one another over cigarette breaks, and she becomes accustomed to working with him and Oz, the Black man who hired her and is like a father to Azarov. The physical link is evident between Antoni and Ona as she cuddles up against him on the back of his Ducati and sips bottles of wine at his affluent house, where she would spend many nights.

Yet, despite the growing tension, Antoni won’t touch her, and when she tries to touch him, he flings her across the room like a rag doll.

Either the man is gay or otherworldly.

This is the third book I’ve read from this author, and it is another psychological masterpiece. As someone who grew up around addicts, I can say the way Christa brings us into the world of addiction is strikingly accurate, from withdrawal symptoms to what addicts are willing to do for another hit. I also adored how diverse this novel is. Even though the author is not Black, she accurately captures the characteristics of the Puerto Rican youngster Jojo and the elder Black man Oz. Their identities didn’t come across as contrived or overly dramatic.

Speaking of characters, there is also the wealthy Panamanian from El Chorrillo. I enjoyed snobbish Sonia’s edge. Sure, she’s a harlot, but her story and character have depth. In my mind’s eye, she appears to be a real person with a past that has shaped who she is today. This story really starts to take off when she enters the picture. This wealthy wife purchases Antoni’s sculpture of Ona for ten million dollars. Determined to have The Hands of God put his hands on her body, Mrs. Sonia Orlyk is more than willing to pose naked in front of the extraordinary man in full glory.

Mr. Orlyk is a wealthy drunk his wife is no longer interested in.

But Sonia’s lust and seduction with Antoni Azarov go too far. Despite the fact that he is a brilliant artist, the tragedy that has characterized his life is beyond his control. Now Ona is about to be swept up in her boss’s drama while fighting her own demons. The dealer outside the clinic and Jojo, who is out of jail but back on drugs and wants to see her, are just two examples of the dangers of relapse lurking around every corner. She is already skipping meetings.

This book is not as dark as I thought it would be based on the description and cover, but the message is deep and layered. It is about the worst kind of darkness, the internal kind we cannot always see in others and even ourselves. It is what happens when our childhood traumas, unhealed and unchecked, follow us into adulthood. It is the study of the human mind and its addiction to drugs, lust, love, fame, and even art.

“Lovesickness. It was worse than dopesickness. Antoni was more dangerous than heroin.” – Ona Price

-Christa Wojciechowski

Oblivion Black is a lengthy read, but you won’t be able to put it down or forget about the characters.

Ratings:

Plot Movement / Strength: 4/5
Entertainment Factor: 4/5
Characterization: 5/5
Authenticity / Believable: 4/5
Thought Provoking: 5/5
Overall Rating: 4/ 5 stars

Grab It From Amazon Here.

OblivionBlack_Front2

To have your book reviewed on this blog apply here. The registry is open for a limited time.

Stay tuned for our next dope read, part two in the Sculptor series.

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews is a reputable review service that features writers from all over the world, both traditionally and independently published. We are listed on Kindlepreneur as a top-tier book review blog and Reedsy as one of their vetted active book blogs that provide insightful, excellent book reviews.

*Books are read in the order they are received.

 

Black History Fun Fact Friday – Selma Burke

Welcome back to Black History Fun Facts where I am still not finished with my original article (lol), but I got you covered.

Now, we are familiar with Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston and many of the writers and musicians of The Harlem Renaissance Movement. What we are not always familiar with are the painters, photographers, and sculptors. That is why when I find someone great, I like to highlight them.

Before we go on, take a moment and dig into your purse, wallet or coin jar (or coin purse….I know some of ya’ll still have them!) Wherever you keep your change, pick out a dime.

In the 1920s, Selma Burke became one of the African American women of the Harlem Renaissance through her relationship with the writer Claude McKay. The two shared a Manhattan apartment but McKay was mean, destroying her work when he didn’t like it, and the relationship was a strange one. Nonetheless, it was through Claude that Burke got introduced to the Harlem community. She studied under another black woman sculptor of the movement, Augusta Savage.

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Selma Burke in her studio, Peter A. Juley & Son Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum J0100403.

An educator, Burke later taught at the Harlem Community Art Center and founded the Selma Burke Art School in New York City and the Selma Burke Art Center in Pittsburgh. (This makes her one of my heroes since I do want to start my own school one day.) Burke is most famous for her 1944 sculpture of Franklin D. Roosevelt, which was the model for his image on the dime, though she never received credit for it. Only now are people starting to recognize that she was the inspiration behind the image.

Burke’s sculpting of the image came about as part of a contest, where she wrote the White House stating that she could not sculpt the image from a photo alone. The White House responded and granted her a sitting with the president. The credit for the plaque was given to U.S. Mint Chief Engraver John Sinnock but it was Burke who created the original design. Burke also sculpted Booker T. Washington and later, Martin Luther King, Jr.

Burke made sculpture by shaping white clay from her parents’ farm as a child. After being educated at what is now Winston-Salem State University and trained as a nurse at St. Agnes Hospital Nursing School in Raleigh, Burke moved to New York City to work as a private nurse.

“Selma Burke was born on December 31, 1900, in Mooresville, North Carolina, the seventh of 10 children of Neil and Mary Colfield Burke. Her father was an AME Church Minister who worked on the railroads for additional income. As a child, she attended a one-room segregated schoolhouse and often played with the riverbed clay found near her home. She would later describe the feeling of squeezing the clay through her fingers as the first encounter with sculpture, saying “It was there in 1907 that I discovered me.” – Wikipedia

After completing a Masters of Fine Arts at Columbia University in 1941, Burke began to teach art, first at the Harlem Community Art Center and later at schools she founded in New York and Pittsburgh.

Burke’s last monumental work, a statue of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Marshall Park in Charlotte, was completed in 1980. Selma Burke died in 1995 in New Hope, Pennsylvania.