Reviews

Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia

palmpages's review against another edition

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4.0

We are force!
We are more than we think we are.

raegold's review against another edition

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4.0

“We {women} are more than we think we are.” This book digs deep into the complicated history of the Cuba crisis and immigration - - from the late 1800s to present day. The story mainly follows Jeanette (present day), but we see how her life has been shaped from the choices of her matriline (mother ancestral line).

kparkin's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-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

4.0

sf92's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

la_yuli's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted 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

mms73's review against another edition

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emotional 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? Yes

3.5

elliejane002's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

readingspells's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

I really don't know much about this book when I selected apart from it was set in Cuba and so thought it would tick that country of my round the world read. 

I will admit that about a couple of hours into the audio once we switched away from Cuba to present day Miami I found myself struggling to relate the beginning of the story of where we were now. It is a big jump and I was very involved in the early Cuba story and this was a bit jarring but I am really glad I stuck with it and just trust in the author to fill in the missing pieces

This book is about women and I loved that whilst there are male characters in the book none of them are given a voice. All of it told and centres the women's stories in them. However as it is about women it is also about male violence, impossible or complicated choices, identity, Motherhood and grief.  

It is also very much about immigration and who no two immigrants experiences are the same and how even within immigrant communities hierarchies form round immigrants who are viewed as 'lesser' in some way.

The book is a little disjointed in places and I wish we had more of Cecily's story and even her Mother as well as maybe more of Carmen. They felt incomplete but maybe that is the history of women and so is fitting in some way

The ending is both devastating and hopeful and whilst some of the flips from past to present and the various women is a little jarring at times overall I really enjoyed this one. 


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

quickolive32's review against another edition

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5.0

I love the way the author wrote this book. The chapters are vignettes into the lives of different women living in different times. The way the author weaves the stories of these women through time is fantastic! The way the author speaks of the Cuban revolution is so fascinating. It's like shes lived all these lives at the same time. There is a monumental amount of empathy required to write something like this. I wish I could do the author justice in this review. I recommend reading this. Its definitely my favorite book this year.

shirleytupperfreeman's review against another edition

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Garcia offers a series of interwoven stories of women from Cuba, Central America and the United States. Some of the women were forced to migrate as adults, some as youngsters with their parents. All have a back story and very different experiences as immigrants. These are strong and resilient women whose lives are often bleak but who also (mostly) find courage and friendship when it is needed. I like the fact that a certain book ties the stories together over time. I listened to this while sewing so sometimes I was confused when the narrator and time frame changed abruptly but I don't think I would have experienced the same confusion if reading a physical book.