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cassielaj's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book is incredibly smart and worth savoring. The way we get to know Yo through the lens of her relationships (spanning many definitions of that word) is such an exciting and effective method of storytelling, and Alvarez does it in such an entertaining way. Each voice is unique, and the characters come to life on the page.
yikesbmg's review
4.0
This was a really cool book. It’s about a character - Yolanda, or Yo — that never gets to speak for herself. Each chapter is written from a different perspective — her sister, mom, dad, bestie, stoner boyfriend, landlord, husband, stalker, etc. They all talk about Yo at different time periods stretching from childhood to older age, and manage to both drill down on the same frustrating characteristics and highlight different facets of her softness.
As I got deeper into the book, I really wanted to hear from Yo herself but the reader never gets to — it left me feeling slightly unsatisfied but mostly impressed. You end the book not really knowing how to feel about this person that you know so much about! Alvarez should be really, really proud of the research that went into this book and her ability to put herself in other’s shoes. The only chapter I really couldn’t stand was the one with Dustin Hayes or whatever his name was — he was too much of a caricature.
I’d recommend to anyone who wants to read a complex novel, has never read Alvarez’s work before, who likes stories about immigrants pulled between too cultures. The only thing I didn’t like was Alvarez’s translation of Spanish words and phrases into English, but then I realized this book was written in 1997. It reads awkwardly at times, but I understand that that translation was an expectation when this was published.
As I got deeper into the book, I really wanted to hear from Yo herself but the reader never gets to — it left me feeling slightly unsatisfied but mostly impressed. You end the book not really knowing how to feel about this person that you know so much about! Alvarez should be really, really proud of the research that went into this book and her ability to put herself in other’s shoes. The only chapter I really couldn’t stand was the one with Dustin Hayes or whatever his name was — he was too much of a caricature.
I’d recommend to anyone who wants to read a complex novel, has never read Alvarez’s work before, who likes stories about immigrants pulled between too cultures. The only thing I didn’t like was Alvarez’s translation of Spanish words and phrases into English, but then I realized this book was written in 1997. It reads awkwardly at times, but I understand that that translation was an expectation when this was published.
onceandfuturereads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Stalking
Minor: Child abuse
yesenianavaa's review
3.0
I didn't particularly like this book. Mostly because the stories revolve around Yolanda and how captivating of a person she is, but I just wasn't feeling it. I wasn't particularly drawn to her character in How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accent so I thought it was an interesting move for Alvarez to then write a collection of stories about her. I like how the book is about her, but also seems like it could have been written about her. In a lot of the stories, there is mention of her writing a book, a collection of short stories, and it seems like this could be it. My favorite stories were The teacher, The caretakers, the night watchman, and the father. I did not care for Dexter Hays as a character, or the new husband or for Doug the new husband. Dexter was corny and silly so I didn't take him seriously. Doug was selfish and judgmental. He was so quick to dismiss Yolanda's practices and beliefs as crazy because anything from another country is superstitious and untrue. I didn't like how he talked to Jose over the phone and threatened to call the police on a man who was struggling so much. And I didn't like how the story didn't address that that was a cruel thing to do. I enjoyed the teacher and how it celebrated how random love could be. Professor Garfield realizes when he's older that he's gay and falls in love with a younger student. The story doesn't have a happy ending because the lover dies of AIDS, but I like how sincere it was written. I liked the caretakers because of how it dealt with trauma. Sergio and Maria's son drowned in the pool and since then, their marriage and Maria haven't been the same. In the end Maria is able to open up to new opportunities and make attempts to live a somewhat normal life. I liked the night watchman because it was cute to see Jose dive deep into his friendship with Yolanda. he valued what she had to say and she made him feel special. She made him feel like his words and ideas mattered. I liked the story from the dad because I guess I'm a sucker for a father daughter story. I thought it was interesting that the father wasn't able to fully separate fact from fiction. He had read so many stories from Yolanda about his life that he would sometimes confuse the two. I think its such an interesting phenomenon because it happens all the time. Every time we tell our truth to others, we are creating a story and we change aspects of it every time, knowingly or unkowingly. I think it speaks to the power of stories and how they shape our lives in more ways than we know.
siglesias's review against another edition
4.0
This is a book about a woman being perceived by a bunch of different people and they all think she's at least mildly irritating. I think this is probably how a book about me would be.
portobello's review
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
katiebow13's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
tofilmfiles's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-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
4.5
misspalah's review against another edition
4.0
“Language is the only homeland. This poet once said that. When there’s no other ground under your feet, you learn quick, believe me”.
- Yo, Julia Alvarez
.
.
Yolanda Garcia or Yo (her nickname) is a piece of work. The stories told in this book is all about her. While there are few good stories about her but some are just bizzarre encounters they had with her to say the least. I cant remember when is the last time i have read this kind of format when the whole book is just a compilation of people in Yolanda Garcia’s life retold their story of her. Some are still very much in her life and some are just remain as past waiting to be let go. Either way, one thing they all share is how peculiar Yo is - Either she was a restless child (according to her own mother), she was unstoppable girl (based on what her cousins and sisters wrote) or she was a trouble maker (this was extracted from her teacher’s story). Generally, she’s a smart girl but will always be unconventional one. She is independent and can be kind if she wanted to. I did enjoy these stories actually even without having no part that is written by YO herself. I just feel like if i ever meet YO in real life, i will run 1000 km far away from her. I just cant handle any more drama in my life. The stories that revolved around YO usually took place between 2 countries, Dominican Republic and The United States of America. While this may be fun and light reading, there are few serious issues in certain stories. Some of it mentioning Trujillo Regime which is why YO’s parents fled the country in the first place, the strict immigration policy that caused YO’s Parents to be more stern with their kids as they dont want to be deported back and the wealth gap between Yo and her cousins as one managed to escape and one were left behind to fend for themselves. Overall, if you are into plot based novel than this is not for you. This is more like short stories collection intertwined with each other whereby their connecting Dot is YO herself. A fun book indeed!
- Yo, Julia Alvarez
.
.
Yolanda Garcia or Yo (her nickname) is a piece of work. The stories told in this book is all about her. While there are few good stories about her but some are just bizzarre encounters they had with her to say the least. I cant remember when is the last time i have read this kind of format when the whole book is just a compilation of people in Yolanda Garcia’s life retold their story of her. Some are still very much in her life and some are just remain as past waiting to be let go. Either way, one thing they all share is how peculiar Yo is - Either she was a restless child (according to her own mother), she was unstoppable girl (based on what her cousins and sisters wrote) or she was a trouble maker (this was extracted from her teacher’s story). Generally, she’s a smart girl but will always be unconventional one. She is independent and can be kind if she wanted to. I did enjoy these stories actually even without having no part that is written by YO herself. I just feel like if i ever meet YO in real life, i will run 1000 km far away from her. I just cant handle any more drama in my life. The stories that revolved around YO usually took place between 2 countries, Dominican Republic and The United States of America. While this may be fun and light reading, there are few serious issues in certain stories. Some of it mentioning Trujillo Regime which is why YO’s parents fled the country in the first place, the strict immigration policy that caused YO’s Parents to be more stern with their kids as they dont want to be deported back and the wealth gap between Yo and her cousins as one managed to escape and one were left behind to fend for themselves. Overall, if you are into plot based novel than this is not for you. This is more like short stories collection intertwined with each other whereby their connecting Dot is YO herself. A fun book indeed!