Reviews

Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia

sofi0518's review against another edition

4.0

I am having a hard time formulating my feelings about this book. I wish it were two books - the multigenerational story of Cuban women and then the immigration story of a Salvadoran girl and her mother. Both stories were compelling - I just think the thread between the stories was tenuous at best, especially with the way it ended.

3.5 stars rounded up because of the beautiful writing. But for me, this book didn’t live up to the hype.

An imaginary star for all the feels reading about my Cuban people.

kellyywardd's review against another edition

4.0

CW for domestic violence, sexual abuse, and detailed descriptions of drug addiction.

I finished this book in two sittings. It was such a quick read and the way it was structured gave me time to pause and really appreciate each part of the story for what it was. My heart will always break for all of these women, and I’m so glad the story ended the way it did because Ana has a special place in my heart.

emily190's review against another edition

emotional

4.5

jkun's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

alexisyc22's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

lexf's review against another edition

3.0

This book is a short book of a number of intertwined stories coming from a generation of Cuban women. The structure of this novel reminded me a lot of Homegoing by Ya Gyasi and it’s likely why I more critical of it as I felt this book feel short compared to Homegoing. I felt the chapters at time were confusing and it wasn’t clear how each chapter was related to the others and I had to go back to the first pages often. As for content, I give this a 4.5. For structure and inconsistency I would give this a 3.

hannahcmwright's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

stacityrrell's review against another edition

This is hard to rate for me. I think the story had a good thought, but it was very hard to follow how much it jumped around. Nothing seems connected, but I did like the different takes on immigration.

teklynreads's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

It’s been a while since reading. I’ll have to go back and try again. Not memorable the first time

jermalaite's review against another edition

3.0

Liūdna, NEšokiruojanti knyga.

Už Atlanto imigrantų, rasizmo ir kitų socialinių negerovių literatūra šiuo metu muša visus rekordus. Aktualumas - 100%, išpildymas, na, kuo toliau, tuo blogiau.

"Of Women and Salt" pasakoja apie kelių moterų imigrančių likimus. Šeimos istorija grįžta net trimis kartomis atgal ir visi kasdieniniai rūpesčiai, išdavystės, dvejonės ar pasirinkimai įgauna visiškai kitokią prasmę.

Užmojis - didelis. Tema - sudėtinga ir jautri. Viskas prasideda gerai - nuotaika, veikėjai, šiek tiek įtampos ir paslapties. Tačiau greitai viskas nusirita žemyn. Atrodo, kad iš to noro papasakoti tiek daug, taip stipriai sukrėsti ir priversti skaitytoją susimąstyti, pametamas dėmesys pačiam tekstui, jo vientisumui. Pasakojimas vietomis trūkinėja, būna perskiriamas nereikalingų intarpų, o tos vietos, kurios galėtų būti išplėtotos - pametamos. Tiesiog pritrūko.

Verta šią knygą atsiversti tam, kad suprasti, kokie skauduliai kamuoja kai kurias valstybes. Kad į viską pasižiūrėti ne iš politinės, o iš žmogiškosios pusės. Tačiau nieko supurtančio iki kaulų smegenų čia nerasite. Galėtų taip būti, bet tam kelią užkerta kai kurie autorės pasirinkimai.

3/5 ⭐