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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
hopeful
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
I loved this book. It was a story I did not know but felt familiar since learning about the history of Cuba on a trip
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I'm still a little bit emotional so I might change my mind, but I kind of doubt that. This was an amazing story. Obviously if you want a completely true, completely uncensored version of Trujillo's dictatorship, read something non-fiction. I think the point of this was to try to see what is left when you take away the legendary aspects of the story so that you can imagine who these sisters truly were.
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
dark
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Absolutely gut wrenching, but beautiful story. My only ick was that there were several seemingly-unnecessary detailed sexual scenes. It threw off the vibe for me, but otherwise I loved it!
What a great book! I read this as part of my One Community, One Book book club read. This would not have been a book I would have picked up on my own and I'm so glad I got an opportunity to read this thought provoking book.
4.5 / 5
When I first reviewed this book back in 2018, I struggled. There are so many beautiful and endearing elements to In the Time of the Butterflies, eloquently describing WHY it’s so beautiful and endearing is hard. I can tell you that Julia Alvarez makes complicated Dominican history accessible and understandable. You can read about the Mirabal sisters online, but this book really connects you to their stories.
If you’re familiar with the Mirabal sisters, you already know how this story ends. At the core of this book is the question: what makes someone a revolutionary? Each sister answers that question in their own way, through various chapters in their lives. Though the book starts off rather slowly, I quickly connected with the characters. The Mirabal sisters began to feel like my family. Even though I knew the ending was coming, I wished for another one. I wanted Alvarez to rewrite history.
This is one of the most beautiful books I’ve ever read. To simply say it’s a book about hope would be inaccurate. Rather it’s a book about hope, revolution and the complicated memories they involve. My sister recommended this to me back in 2018. If you haven’t read it yet, I’m going to recommend it to you in 2020.
When I first reviewed this book back in 2018, I struggled. There are so many beautiful and endearing elements to In the Time of the Butterflies, eloquently describing WHY it’s so beautiful and endearing is hard. I can tell you that Julia Alvarez makes complicated Dominican history accessible and understandable. You can read about the Mirabal sisters online, but this book really connects you to their stories.
If you’re familiar with the Mirabal sisters, you already know how this story ends. At the core of this book is the question: what makes someone a revolutionary? Each sister answers that question in their own way, through various chapters in their lives. Though the book starts off rather slowly, I quickly connected with the characters. The Mirabal sisters began to feel like my family. Even though I knew the ending was coming, I wished for another one. I wanted Alvarez to rewrite history.
This is one of the most beautiful books I’ve ever read. To simply say it’s a book about hope would be inaccurate. Rather it’s a book about hope, revolution and the complicated memories they involve. My sister recommended this to me back in 2018. If you haven’t read it yet, I’m going to recommend it to you in 2020.
I know next to nothing about the Dominican Republic and its history, but dictators in any time or place look the same--spreading lies, silencing opponents and disrespecting women. It always has been and always will be important for brave women to stand up for what is right. I hope I can be a brave woman.
I started this book because I was interested in learning more about the Dominican Republican during this time period and under dictatorship. I think Alvarez does a fantastic job in bringing in the history to these women’s lives and fleshing out more of the people they could have been in the day to day.
My main issue is the writing, which made it hard to want to continue reading. While I feel like the sisters had distinct enough personalities, the writing feels juvenile despite them aging as the story progresses. Outside of Maria Teresa’s chapters, everyone else seems written too oddly. I can see how the more simple writing style emulates how young these women were when they began their activism against a regime and El Jefe, but it took me out. I was getting bored, which is a shame because the actual storyline itself isn’t terrible. It just wasn’t written in a way that was a compelling to me.
My main issue is the writing, which made it hard to want to continue reading. While I feel like the sisters had distinct enough personalities, the writing feels juvenile despite them aging as the story progresses. Outside of Maria Teresa’s chapters, everyone else seems written too oddly. I can see how the more simple writing style emulates how young these women were when they began their activism against a regime and El Jefe, but it took me out. I was getting bored, which is a shame because the actual storyline itself isn’t terrible. It just wasn’t written in a way that was a compelling to me.