Reviews with content warning for Drug use - Olga Dies Dreaming

This book was filled with complex characters and I didn't really know what to expect going into it. I knew it was about Puerto Rico and a family living in New York but this book was so much more than that.

Olga is a wedding planner for the elite in New York City, while Prieto is a congressman representing Sunset Park. Both of them are trying to make their mom proud but in different ways. I ignorantly have never really thought about Puerto Rico's wants/needs for independence and I really appreciated the perspective, especially with colonialism continuing to be at the forefront of world politics today. Although you could argue Olga's mom's way of living was extreme - you can appreciate her perspective.

Other difficult issues that were addressed in this book are drug abuse, sexuality, & HIV/AIDS. Both Olga and Prieto were in their late 30s still trying to find their true selves away from the weight of their parents.

This book was all about family, purpose, and discovering what truly matters in this world.

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bootsmom3's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective 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

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kaitlinlovesbooks's review

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-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? Yes

5.0

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geekywoman14's review against another edition

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emotional sad 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? It's complicated

3.5

It's a good book for a family drama read with a bit of cultural and political history intertwined.

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shannahtan's review

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emotional hopeful informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0

I just happened to grab this book at the library. Honestly, I think the cover drew me in. I was looking for a romance, which I got a little of. I know books love to be set in NYC, but I appreciate that the author actually grew up in Brooklyn. I loved the foray into Puerto Rican and Brooklyn history. The history was actually really new to me, and I looked up a lot of it, and I appreciate how the author did a lot of research (as mentioned in their acknowledgements).

I think the book really captured the complexities of family and parental relationships. How Blanca is amazing in a lot of ways but also manipulative. I would get really mad at Olga, Prieto, Mabel, etc at times but still want them to succeed. The characters were still lovable despite being imperfect, and you can judge them until you reflect on your own life or what you might do in the same situation.

I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time!

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