Tough Love

Now that we have finished 'lullabies for little criminals' I find it appropriate to say something along the lines of "WOW, what a wild ride of sadness, horror, glimpses of happiness, drugs, sex, and prostitutes". I have never in my life sat down and read a novel like Heather O'Neil's!

In the beginning I was very worried, I thought 'oh goodness here we go'. Immediately following this thought I decided 'no it won't be that sad, horrific, or stomach wrenching' and then I realized...yes, yes it is that kind of novel! Baby's knows all to well the cruelties of streets and for a girl of only twelve years old she has experienced and witnessed much more than even an adult should have!

I found it very hard to feel sympathy toward Jules, Baby's dad, probably because he was a heroin addicted junkie who seemed to love and care for his stash on a whole other level then he did for Baby. Many times throughout the novel I found myself frustrated with Jules, especially as he became more abusive and aloof of his young daughter. Now for a girl who has grown up in the country with a loving a mom, dad, two sisters, and a family dog, I am fare from truly understanding the life of junkies and prostitutes living in downtown Montreal. Although in my hometown there are not massive drug dealers walking the streets or pimps walking arm in arm with his prostitutes I have traveled a lot and have seen some disturbing tings...but I found that while reading this book all of my experiences didn't matter. They didn't matter because I don't know the people's stories, I don't know what happened in life that landed them on the street that they are living on, and I don't know what they're circumstances were when they were growing up. In the novel the readers really are in the lives of Jules and Baby, we have an idea of what has led them down the paths that they are on and we have many emotions linked to each character.

It was at the end of the novel when I really thought about it that I realized Jules and Baby do love each other, in their own dysfunctional and inconceivable way. Although Jules is abusive and selfish for Baby's twelve years of life he does do special things for her where you see that glimpse of love: he makes her a pinata (it's horrible but at least he tried), he gets her a doll (second hand but Baby loves her), he calls his smack 'chocolate milk' (to try and keep her from knowing the truth), and there are other examples. Ultimatly I think that Jules truly stepped up to the plate at the end of the novel when he puts his foot down and takes her to live with her aunt in the country. This action is his greatest show of love as this means that he is trying to better her life, he wants her to have things that he didn't have and the things that she has not had.

Although Baby and Jules have many rough relations, at the end of the day they are still father and daughter. They still love each other, even if they don't know how to show it.