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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I can't seem to understand why I had not happened upon Prayers for the Stolen sooner; this is an excellent novel. It is heavy with the reality of life for women and girls within the grasp of Mexican drug cartels, but the voice (of the protagonist) is candid, observant, unwavering, and resilient. Moreover, the writing, which is beautifully poetic even in its sadness, functions almost as emotional punctuation, setting the tone in a very effective way.
Wow, what a heartbreaking story. Even though it's fiction, the social and political context is very much a reality for so many in rural Mexico, so awful. I loved the stream of consciousness first person storytelling that privileged the girl's experiences and perspectives. It's such a sad story, but I loved it & definitely recommend it.
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The success of Prayers for the Stolen by Jennifer Clement lies in the awareness it raises about conditions in rural Mexican communities. The book is focused on creating a picture of the society rather than developing characters and plot. It does create a vivid picture in describing the sad reality of drug trafficking, human trafficking, poverty, alcoholism and other things that threaten these communities.
Read my complete review at: http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2014/12/prayers-for-stolen.html
Reviewed based on a publisher’s galley received through Edelweiss
Read my complete review at: http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2014/12/prayers-for-stolen.html
Reviewed based on a publisher’s galley received through Edelweiss
Actually, 3.5 stars. The story itself is not remarkable, but the trials explored during this short work need to be brought into the forefront and discussed. Without the Rosie list, it won't get checked out very much.
Absolutely beautiful.
One of my favorite books ever. Every sentence is like a piece of poetry. Definitely the best read of this year so far.
I do wish that the author made the book longer and actually make the main character part of the 'stolen' girls; that way we would have gained more perspective of what their lives actually looked like. Nonetheless, just absolutely incredible.
One of my favorite books ever. Every sentence is like a piece of poetry. Definitely the best read of this year so far.
I do wish that the author made the book longer and actually make the main character part of the 'stolen' girls; that way we would have gained more perspective of what their lives actually looked like. Nonetheless, just absolutely incredible.
Stāstā meiteņu likteņi iezīmējas kā krītošas zvaigznes. Sižeta līnija nevar atstāt vienaldzīgu - narkotiku bizness, cilvēku tirdzniecība un vīriešu izceļošana uz ASV - salauž šo jauno sieviešu dzīves kādā mazā Meksikas ciematā. Mātes cer, ka tām piedzims dēli, bet ja nepaveicās un dzimst meita, cerams, ka ne visai glīta. Meitenes nevar pārvietoties bez pavadoņu,un katrai no tām pagalmā ir bedre, kur noslēpties, ja tālumā dzird tuvojamies mašīnu, kas var pāršķelt viņām pazīstamo dzīvi uz pusēm.
So close to 4 Stars. There are truly wondrous segments of prose, and Clement tells tales of heartbreak with honesty and grit while avoiding melodrama. There were a handful of moments when the transitions from plot sections felt either forced or too swift. But I was certainly engrossed.
Oh wow! What a book. It will stay with me...
- She told me to tell you love is not a feeling. It's a sacrifice.
- The best thing you can be in Mexico is an ugly girl.
- I told everyone a boy was born, she said. If I were a girl then I would be stolen.
- As soon as someone heard the sound of an SUV approaching, or saw a black dot in the distance or two or three black dots, all girls ran to the holes.
- Our men crossed the river to the United States. They dipped their feet in the water and waded up to their waists but they were dead when they got to the other side.
- Son of a bitch, my mother said again and again, for years. She never said his name again. He was Song of a Bitch forever after.
- Of course, the USA-to Mexico rumor road was the most powerful rumor route in the whole world. If you did not know the truth, you knew the rumor and the rumor was always a lot, lot more than the truth.
- Don't ever pray for love and health, Mother said. Or money. If God Hears what you really want He will not give it to you. Guaranteed. When my father left my mother said, Get down on your knees and pray for spoons.
- If you are going to kill me tomorrow, you might as well kill me today.
Always be the cook, she said. Never let anyone cook for you.
The truth was we knew the cause behind the deformities on our mountains. Everyone knew that the spraying of poisons to kill the crops of Marijuana and poppies was harming our people.
- When we looked at him, we looked at ourselves. Every imperfection our skin scars, things we had never even noticed, we saw in him.
Jose Rosa tasted like glass windows, cement, and elevators to the moon.
That day all anyone could hear was the silence of cell phones. That was it. It was the sound of Paula stolen. That was the song.
I could see the cigarette-burn stars that made up Orion and Taurus. Even her feet were covered in round burns. Paula had walked through the Milky Way and every star had burned her body.
- Everything looked as if Paula and her mother were about to return. Yes, my mother said. This is how you disappear: as if you're going to appear.
I closed my hands into fists so that I would not start to count the amount of people we had lost on my fingers.
- Luna said, can you believe that there are only 26 letters to say everything? There are only 26 letters to talk about love and jealousy and God.
- Listen, there is no way I want to be buried in a cemetery with all those dead people.
- She sleeps because she prefers dreams, not because she is tired.
- If I had shoes would I give them to her? I knew I probably wouldn't. In only a few days the jail had modified me. I thought about what Violeta had said earlier, how people outside forgot you in only three days.
The ground here is so cold, she said. Yes, in this place even the sun is cold.
- She told me to tell you love is not a feeling. It's a sacrifice.
- The best thing you can be in Mexico is an ugly girl.
- I told everyone a boy was born, she said. If I were a girl then I would be stolen.
- As soon as someone heard the sound of an SUV approaching, or saw a black dot in the distance or two or three black dots, all girls ran to the holes.
- Our men crossed the river to the United States. They dipped their feet in the water and waded up to their waists but they were dead when they got to the other side.
- Son of a bitch, my mother said again and again, for years. She never said his name again. He was Song of a Bitch forever after.
- Of course, the USA-to Mexico rumor road was the most powerful rumor route in the whole world. If you did not know the truth, you knew the rumor and the rumor was always a lot, lot more than the truth.
- Don't ever pray for love and health, Mother said. Or money. If God Hears what you really want He will not give it to you. Guaranteed. When my father left my mother said, Get down on your knees and pray for spoons.
- If you are going to kill me tomorrow, you might as well kill me today.
Always be the cook, she said. Never let anyone cook for you.
The truth was we knew the cause behind the deformities on our mountains. Everyone knew that the spraying of poisons to kill the crops of Marijuana and poppies was harming our people.
- When we looked at him, we looked at ourselves. Every imperfection our skin scars, things we had never even noticed, we saw in him.
Jose Rosa tasted like glass windows, cement, and elevators to the moon.
That day all anyone could hear was the silence of cell phones. That was it. It was the sound of Paula stolen. That was the song.
I could see the cigarette-burn stars that made up Orion and Taurus. Even her feet were covered in round burns. Paula had walked through the Milky Way and every star had burned her body.
- Everything looked as if Paula and her mother were about to return. Yes, my mother said. This is how you disappear: as if you're going to appear.
I closed my hands into fists so that I would not start to count the amount of people we had lost on my fingers.
- Luna said, can you believe that there are only 26 letters to say everything? There are only 26 letters to talk about love and jealousy and God.
- Listen, there is no way I want to be buried in a cemetery with all those dead people.
- She sleeps because she prefers dreams, not because she is tired.
- If I had shoes would I give them to her? I knew I probably wouldn't. In only a few days the jail had modified me. I thought about what Violeta had said earlier, how people outside forgot you in only three days.
The ground here is so cold, she said. Yes, in this place even the sun is cold.