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jammons's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
natgzmun's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
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
4.25
La narración es cronológica pero invertida, así que empezamos con la versión y las experiencias de las mujeres García y progresivamente las conocemos como adolescentes y niñas. Esta estrategia narrativa hace el libro un poco tedioso para mí, pues estás mujeres son cada vez menos interesantes y no pude empatizar con sus visiones del mundo como niñas. Tampoco es que haya ninguna información interesante que se vaya revelando a medida que avanza el libro, o volvemos en el tiempo. Hay referencias a crisis de salud mental que no se exploran a profundidad. En realidad, al final, poco conocemos a las hermanas García. El contexto de la dictadura en la Rep. Dominicana es muy importante en la historia y le da un trasfondo de peso. Me habría gustado leerlo en la universidad para poder analizarlo y entenderlo mejor, también desde una perspectiva marcada por la buena posición social de la familia narrada.
shronlee's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.25
This book was a banger in the 90s, but I can't imagine it would be received well now in the post-woke era. First, there are several mentions of fair-skinned conquistador pride which is.... ok. And the plot entirely focuses on a rich family in DR and their lavish lifestyles. The servant girls are treated as afterthoughts. Ignorant country girls or, in the case of the Haitians, backwards.
Idk, the book kinda gave me the ick. I feel there was no meaningful exploration of the Latin American identity, and mental health breakdowns are used more as a cheap plot tool
Idk, the book kinda gave me the ick. I feel there was no meaningful exploration of the Latin American identity, and mental health breakdowns are used more as a cheap plot tool
book_concierge's review against another edition
4.0
The García family flees the Dominican Republic for the United States amid political unrest. The four sisters – Carla, Sandra, Yolanda, and Sofia – find 1960s New York City very different from the upper-middle-class life they knew “back home.” Absent their maids and extended family, the García girls do their best to assimilate into the mainstream; they iron their hair, forget their Spanish, and meet (and date) boys without chaperones.
This is a wonderfully entertaining look at the immigrant experience and at the strong family ties that see these sisters (and their parents) through a tumultuous adolescence and young adulthood. The novel is told in alternating perspectives, focusing on a different sister in each chapter, and also moving back in time, from 1989 to 1956.
When exploring their childhood in the DR, Alvarez allows the innocence of youth to be apparent. Children may sense that something isn’t quite right, but they typically don’t know the realities facing their parents. The family’s sudden departure for the United States is at first a great adventure, but the reality of reduced circumstances and cramped city apartments (instead of a large family compound with gardens and servants) quickly makes the girls homesick. Once assured that there is no going back, they struggle to fit in with their peers at school. They don’t want to stick out due to dress, language, food, or customs. With their assimilation, however, comes a greater clash between the girls and their parents’ “old world” values.
The use of multiple narrators and non-linear time line, however, made for an uneven reading experience. I would be invested in one sister’s story, and then jerked to a different time and place and narrator with little or no warning. Some members of my F2F book club found this so distracting that they lowered their ratings significantly. But for me the “confusion” is indicative of the immigrant experience. Each immigrant ultimately has to choose the extent to which she will adopt the customs, foods, dress of her new environment, and how much of her native customs, foods, dress to keep and share with her new neighbors. The García girls draw comfort from their deep roots in the Dominican Republic while bravely and enthusiastically facing and embracing their future as Americans.
This is a wonderfully entertaining look at the immigrant experience and at the strong family ties that see these sisters (and their parents) through a tumultuous adolescence and young adulthood. The novel is told in alternating perspectives, focusing on a different sister in each chapter, and also moving back in time, from 1989 to 1956.
When exploring their childhood in the DR, Alvarez allows the innocence of youth to be apparent. Children may sense that something isn’t quite right, but they typically don’t know the realities facing their parents. The family’s sudden departure for the United States is at first a great adventure, but the reality of reduced circumstances and cramped city apartments (instead of a large family compound with gardens and servants) quickly makes the girls homesick. Once assured that there is no going back, they struggle to fit in with their peers at school. They don’t want to stick out due to dress, language, food, or customs. With their assimilation, however, comes a greater clash between the girls and their parents’ “old world” values.
The use of multiple narrators and non-linear time line, however, made for an uneven reading experience. I would be invested in one sister’s story, and then jerked to a different time and place and narrator with little or no warning. Some members of my F2F book club found this so distracting that they lowered their ratings significantly. But for me the “confusion” is indicative of the immigrant experience. Each immigrant ultimately has to choose the extent to which she will adopt the customs, foods, dress of her new environment, and how much of her native customs, foods, dress to keep and share with her new neighbors. The García girls draw comfort from their deep roots in the Dominican Republic while bravely and enthusiastically facing and embracing their future as Americans.
magzwin's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
It took me several attempts read this, having started 3 times before finishing. I didn’t care for the reverse timeline. The writing style was also a bit difficult at times. As a retired Spanish teacher, I did appreciate the illustrations of language and cultural experiences as well as the time line of events taking place in the world at the time.
timna_wyckoff's review
3.0
I'm not sure why I didn't love this. I liked each individual section, but I didn't feel like the book as a whole really worked. I really didn't understand the choice to put the stories in backward chronological order. Usually, that is a mechanism to reveal something telling from the past, but that didn't seem to be the case here.
edzee_lcnm's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.75
I read this one in preparation of seeing Julia Alvarez at the 2024 Santa Fe Literary Festival (where she'll be supporting her latest novel - at age 74! - 'The Cemetery of Untold Stories) -- plus this one felt like it was a classic (and indeed it appears to be the first 'major' novel from a Dominican Republic author) and now having read it, quite autobiographical as well - so I feel a better prepared now to see Alvarez (tho I am fairly certain I read her novel "Yo!" way back when, pre-Goodreads ... so does it even count??).
It's easy to see why Alvarez is one of the grand dames of Latin/Hispanic American literature. This felt more like a collection of related short stories versus a novel, tho it is still a complete story (told in reverse!) of the Garcia family and four sisters of their early life in the Dominican Republic and their immigration to the United States. Given it being told in reverse, it is a bit confusing at times and I felt there were probably more connections I should have been making -- i.e. something that I was currently reading in the past explained what had happened in the future (got that?). And like short story (or linked story) works, I connected with some stories/chapters better than others. But the book is filled with (many!) colorful characters and with great authenticity and sincerity.
Overall, 3.75 stars.
It's easy to see why Alvarez is one of the grand dames of Latin/Hispanic American literature. This felt more like a collection of related short stories versus a novel, tho it is still a complete story (told in reverse!) of the Garcia family and four sisters of their early life in the Dominican Republic and their immigration to the United States. Given it being told in reverse, it is a bit confusing at times and I felt there were probably more connections I should have been making -- i.e. something that I was currently reading in the past explained what had happened in the future (got that?). And like short story (or linked story) works, I connected with some stories/chapters better than others. But the book is filled with (many!) colorful characters and with great authenticity and sincerity.
Overall, 3.75 stars.
breathehopebooks's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Oof okay so
I remember waaaaaay back in the day—i must’ve been like 11 or 12? My mom made me check this book out and read it. Idk if my mom read this at one point and thought i’d like it, or if it was required summer reading, or if she pick it randomly as “YA book for girl by Hispanic author”. It was probs one of the second two, from what i recall.
ANYWAY. I’m really glad 11 year-old me couldn’t get through this book because THERE’S NO WAY MY MOM ACTUALLY WANTED ME TO READ THIS AT THAT AGE.
I kept thinking of this as a Hispanic “Little Women”, which is to say they are very similar in that it’s a book, told mostly in vingettes with a very loose plot to tie up at the end, about four sisters coming-of-age in a changing country. One of them is a writer called Jo/Yo, one is a flirt, and one becomes very ill for no reason. It’s literally about these four daughters growing up and their parents’ experiences with them in a new society.
But all the sexual content described? Probs not appropriate for an eleven-year-old, Mom.
I remember waaaaaay back in the day—i must’ve been like 11 or 12? My mom made me check this book out and read it. Idk if my mom read this at one point and thought i’d like it, or if it was required summer reading, or if she pick it randomly as “YA book for girl by Hispanic author”. It was probs one of the second two, from what i recall.
ANYWAY. I’m really glad 11 year-old me couldn’t get through this book because THERE’S NO WAY MY MOM ACTUALLY WANTED ME TO READ THIS AT THAT AGE.
I kept thinking of this as a Hispanic “Little Women”, which is to say they are very similar in that it’s a book, told mostly in vingettes with a very loose plot to tie up at the end, about four sisters coming-of-age in a changing country. One of them is a writer called Jo/Yo, one is a flirt, and one becomes very ill for no reason. It’s literally about these four daughters growing up and their parents’ experiences with them in a new society.
But all the sexual content described? Probs not appropriate for an eleven-year-old, Mom.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Eating disorder, Sexual content, Body shaming, Bullying, Mental illness, Pregnancy, and War