Dark Blue Suit by Peter Bacho is a collection of seemingly disconnected stories that tie together a narrative the further you read.  Set in Seattle, we’re taken through the life of a young man named Buddy from the 1950’s up through the 80’s.  There’s stories of Buddy’s father, Vince, a factory canning foreman, who in an aging dark blue suit has earned the respect of the Filipino community due to his status.  A tough young man named, Rico, joins the military and is sent off to Vietnam, who returns home alive but never fully recovers from the horrors he witnessed.  We learn of the Filipino boxing community and the Bruce Lee martial arts school in the Seattle area.  As a Washington native, it was great to read something that took place practically in our backyard.  It made the stories all that more vivid.

With all the focus on boxing and masculinity, I was reminded of Martin Scorcese’s Raging Bull (1980).  In both works, we’re shown a sort of hyper-masculinity in characters and the effects of it on themselves and those surrounding them.  Honestly, I was struck by some of the casual misogyny that was ever present through out the first three-quarters of the text.  The absence of meaningful female characters troubled me in some chapters.  However, in two pivotal later chapters, we see the negative impact these beliefs and actions have.  A heartbreaking chapter centers around Buddy running into his half-sister on Christmas Eve.  She was ignored and disowned by her fathe.  It’s a sobering and sad turn of events.

I was reminded of the film, Better Luk Tomorrow, as I read this collection of stories.  In both works, it seems like the young men double down on what they think the American was of life is.  Cool clothing, being the best figther, and dating white women.  All these characters seem to have a chip on their shoulder and have to prove themselves to the world.