With "The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" Junot Diaz proves his creativity as a writer.  Using a mixture of Spanish, Dominican slang, and sci-fi/comic book references, Diaz brings home the head-spinning reality of the immigrant experience, where one often knows that they are missing much of what transpires around them, as details of context and colloquialism are lost.  While this makes the read on occasion difficult (while I am nerdy enough to be ok on the comics and sci-fi, I often needed to ask my Spanish speaking wife for help), he makes his point with skill.  At the same time the book is laced with humor and the pathos.