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kirstym25's review against another edition
emotional
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail and Torture
Moderate: Violence, Death, and Confinement
Minor: Rape
hullosweetpea's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Gun violence, Torture, Sexual content, and Death
Minor: Drug use, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, and Rape
writtenontheflyleaves's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
America Is Not the Heart by Elaine Castillo ❤️🔥
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
❤️🔥 The plot: When Hero de Vera arrives in America, disowned by her parents and still recovering from two years imprisoned by police in the Philippines, she feels like she's already lived many lifetimes. Living in America with her Uncle Pol, his wife Paz, and their daughter Roni brings her a new family, a new job, new potential for love. Can she reconcile this new life with the home and the memories she's left behind?
I bought this after seeing @hannahdotmay rave about it and, like so much that Hannah brings into my life, it was beautiful.
It's rare that I read a book where the characters feel so real and loveable even when they're not "likeable". Paz is the queen of this: The novel opens with a section in second person about her upbringing, which at first I thought a bit strange as it then veers hard into third person for Hero's story. But this section sets the scene so perfectly for the rest of the book and allows you to understand the complexity of her character as she operates in the background of the main story, to see her softness even when she's being harsh to Hero or Roni.
As well as delivering complex characters, the writing here was beautiful. There were a million moments where I had to put the book down for a moment to appreciate what I'd just read.
Overall, I was amazed by how much love was packed into this book, its deep appreciation for the different ways in which love can be shown, and how painful it can be sometimes, to let yourself feel and to give to other people.
❤️🔥 Read it if you love stories about families that aren't just about parents and children, scenes focusing on food and meals as sites of connection, wlw stories, and romantic storylines within larger novels.
🚫 Check TWs before reading and avoid if you're looking for a more quote-unquote "heartwarming" read as this is definitely more on the bittersweet end of moving storytelling.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
❤️🔥 The plot: When Hero de Vera arrives in America, disowned by her parents and still recovering from two years imprisoned by police in the Philippines, she feels like she's already lived many lifetimes. Living in America with her Uncle Pol, his wife Paz, and their daughter Roni brings her a new family, a new job, new potential for love. Can she reconcile this new life with the home and the memories she's left behind?
I bought this after seeing @hannahdotmay rave about it and, like so much that Hannah brings into my life, it was beautiful.
It's rare that I read a book where the characters feel so real and loveable even when they're not "likeable". Paz is the queen of this: The novel opens with a section in second person about her upbringing, which at first I thought a bit strange as it then veers hard into third person for Hero's story. But this section sets the scene so perfectly for the rest of the book and allows you to understand the complexity of her character as she operates in the background of the main story, to see her softness even when she's being harsh to Hero or Roni.
As well as delivering complex characters, the writing here was beautiful. There were a million moments where I had to put the book down for a moment to appreciate what I'd just read.
Overall, I was amazed by how much love was packed into this book, its deep appreciation for the different ways in which love can be shown, and how painful it can be sometimes, to let yourself feel and to give to other people.
❤️🔥 Read it if you love stories about families that aren't just about parents and children, scenes focusing on food and meals as sites of connection, wlw stories, and romantic storylines within larger novels.
🚫 Check TWs before reading and avoid if you're looking for a more quote-unquote "heartwarming" read as this is definitely more on the bittersweet end of moving storytelling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Moderate: Medical content, Vomit, Torture, and Sexual content
Minor: Homophobia, Pedophilia, Rape, and Racial slurs
spinesinaline's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
That was excellent.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Donnabella Mortel and that may be the best decision I make all year! She’s fantastic, I love the way she’s able to change her voice for each character. It really came across in the end as a full cast and each character so recognizable and fleshed-out. Also, if you’re like me and are very unfamiliar with Tagalog and Ilocano, Martel’s pronunciation is really helpful in following the story. I’d still love to get a print copy so I can look up the words I don’t know but there’s enough to go on in context that you shouldn’t have any trouble if you don’t know these languages.
I’m also unfamiliar with the history of the Philippines so there was a lot of new, horrific, information in this book, though if you do know this history you’ll likely know what’s coming. Much of the book is set in America after Hero arrives from the Philippines and stays with her uncle and his family but there are many flashbacks of her and Paz’, her uncle’s wife, life in the Philippines, the losses they endured, and what ultimately brought them to the States. This is an incredibly heavy book and the author doesn’t shy away from the torture and abuse some of the characters faced in the past so please be mindful going in. I have more information on content warnings above.
While Hero is the main character, the prologue is actually from the perspective of a different character and in the audiobook it was an hour long! I’ve never read a prologue that long before but from that point on I was hooked. It’s such a gripping start to the story and I wanted to know everything there was to know about these characters.
The ending was beautiful and funny and a little painful, and just, what a good read.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Donnabella Mortel and that may be the best decision I make all year! She’s fantastic, I love the way she’s able to change her voice for each character. It really came across in the end as a full cast and each character so recognizable and fleshed-out. Also, if you’re like me and are very unfamiliar with Tagalog and Ilocano, Martel’s pronunciation is really helpful in following the story. I’d still love to get a print copy so I can look up the words I don’t know but there’s enough to go on in context that you shouldn’t have any trouble if you don’t know these languages.
I’m also unfamiliar with the history of the Philippines so there was a lot of new, horrific, information in this book, though if you do know this history you’ll likely know what’s coming. Much of the book is set in America after Hero arrives from the Philippines and stays with her uncle and his family but there are many flashbacks of her and Paz’, her uncle’s wife, life in the Philippines, the losses they endured, and what ultimately brought them to the States. This is an incredibly heavy book and the author doesn’t shy away from the torture and abuse some of the characters faced in the past so please be mindful going in. I have more information on content warnings above.
While Hero is the main character, the prologue is actually from the perspective of a different character and in the audiobook it was an hour long! I’ve never read a prologue that long before but from that point on I was hooked. It’s such a gripping start to the story and I wanted to know everything there was to know about these characters.
The ending was beautiful and funny and a little painful, and just, what a good read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, Torture, Homophobia, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Police brutality, Colonisation, Medical content, Physical abuse, Grief, Racism, and Terminal illness
Minor: Rape and Vomit
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