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birdbrainbooks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
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? Yes
4.0
Well I did not expect to cry my way through the entire last quarter of this book! What a powerful story. The first pages hooked me immediately; after that, the meandering nature of switching narrators and timeframes started to frustrate me a bit; and then it all just suddenly gelled and really packed an emotional punch. I fell in love with our protagonist Talia from page one, and later on with both of her parents as well (what a beautifully imperfect love story). Some elements of hard choices and family separations hit sensitive personal notes. Highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Grief, Death, Death of parent, and Confinement
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Racial slurs, and Police brutality
bookmaddie's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Engel's writing is absolutely gorgeous, and I'm impressed that she managed to create such an impactful story in so few pages. The story of this family encompasses so much—stories from Mauro and Elena's youth, to their children growing up, all amidst the instability of immigration and undocumented life in the United States. I enjoyed getting to know each family member, though I think the inclusion of Katrina's first-person point-of-view towards the latter half of the book was quite jarring. I think the flow between the initial introduction of her perspective and the rest of the novel could have been better. But after I got over that and figured out how each first-person chapter worked, I appreciated the point of view that they provided. I think they really helped flesh out the narrative and provide a complete picture of this family.
Definitely looking forward to what Engel writes next!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Confinement
Moderate: Racism
womanwill's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Racism, Xenophobia, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Grief
Moderate: Confinement, Death of parent, and Dementia
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
kylieqrada's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.5
I don't feel qualified to review this book, but I will give it my best shot. I read this in one sitting. It was not an easy read, but it was a beautifully written and a necessary one. It is a very character-driven look at the immigrant experience, through the lens of one Colombian family. We get multiple points of view, mostly from Talia, the family's youngest daughter, but also from Mauro, the father, Elena, the mother, and Karina and Nando, the other two siblings. Mauro and Talia are together in Columbia, and Elena, Karina, and Nando are together in the U.S. The different POVs allow us to explore the immigration experience from multiple angles, and to understand that "the immigrant" is not a monolith. Particularly, the "undocumented immigrant" is not a monolith. Characters in the book are U.S. citizens, undocumented immigrants, Colombian citizens, and dual citizens. I can't necessarily say that I enjoyed the reading experience of this book, but I did learn a lot, and I think that Patricia Engel is a stunningly gorgeous writer. I docked half of a star for fatphobic content. This book contains a lot of potentially harmful content, so please check CWs before reading.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Dementia, Fatphobia, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Rape, Pedophilia, Medical trauma, Medical content, and Grief
eflatkey's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Xenophobia, Death, Death of parent, and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Confinement and Alcoholism
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