Reviews

Your Heart My Sky by Margarita Engle

nicolemhewitt's review against another edition

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5.0

This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction

Your Heart My Sky highlights a time in Cuba’s history that many people don’t know about: “The special period in times of peace.” Sounds wonderful, right? Well, I suppose that’s how the government wanted people to see it, but many people in Cuba were actually starving during this time (I was amazed to find out this took place in 1991—I was in high school at this time and had absolutely no idea what was happening to people in Cuba). The story follows Liana and Amado, both students who are avoiding the country’s “voluntary” summer work program and trying to scrounge up enough food to stay alive. Dodging their duties is enough to be seen as a traitor and find themselves arrested, so it only feels like one more dangerous step when they begin to aid people fleeing the country on makeshift rafts, and one more when they learn to grow an illegal garden. Plus, they know that Amado will be forced into the military once he’s sixteen or face imprisonment like his brother. The two fall in love and have to decide whether to stay in Cuba and fight for a better life there or brave the dangerous seas and flee. The book is written in a beautifully poetic style (it feels more like poetry than many of the verse novels I’ve read), and the stakes are incredibly high. I think this book will stick with me for a very long time.

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher for review purposes. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

parasnore's review

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emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-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? No

2.0

bmbmunoz's review against another edition

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4.0

Que fuerte

themoodypages's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative inspiring sad fast-paced

5.0

taylorbee13's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

meaganmart's review against another edition

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2.0

Let me start by saying that I do feel a bit guilty for rating a book about such a devastating and underrepresented time period as 2 stars. I knew nothing about the "special period in times of peace" prior to picking up this novel, and my heart aches for the Cuban people and the years of famine and struggles that they were forced to endure.

That being said, I found the love story at the center of this novel to be so unbelievable that the rest of the plot felt flat. Liana and Amado fall in instant love. There is not developing of their relationship, there is no discovering new feelings, it is *BAM* we are soulmates we will be together and break the law together forever and ever amen. I found it hard to believe that two people (and their families) would take such an enormous risk together in such a short period of time with the backdrop of suspicion the author has pervading their small town.

z_brarian's review against another edition

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4.0

A powerful novel in verse taking place in Cuba during the early 90s. There, people had to make a hard decision: risk fleeing across the ocean to sanctuary in the US or stay, trying to survive on only hope and very little food. To think this embargo is still in force and Cubans are still to this day fighting to survive.

thenextgenlibrarian's review against another edition

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4.0

“My only answer is independence. I need to find out whether it’s possible to live courageously in a time of danger.”

sandlerpage's review against another edition

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4.0

Some truly remarkable phrases in this - “Maybe love at first sight actually does exist for those who are well-fed enough to sleep.”

zbrarian's review against another edition

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4.0

A powerful novel in verse taking place in Cuba during the early 90s. There, people had to make a hard decision: risk fleeing across the ocean to sanctuary in the US or stay, trying to survive on only hope and very little food. To think this embargo is still in force and Cubans are still to this day fighting to survive.