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bookishmillennial's review
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
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial
This is a fictional story about Olga, a wedding planner based in New York City in 2017, although there are some letters that are written to both Olga and her brother Prieto from 1994 all the way to almost the present from their mom, who is a Young-Lord-turned-radical who left them about 30 years ago to focus on her activism.
This is a fictional story about Olga, a wedding planner based in New York City in 2017, although there are some letters that are written to both Olga and her brother Prieto from 1994 all the way to almost the present from their mom, who is a Young-Lord-turned-radical who left them about 30 years ago to focus on her activism.
This story takes place before, during and after a hurricane devastates Puerto Rico, where their parents are from. We are given insight into the characters' experiences and processing of racism, white privilege, elitism, misogyny, capitalism and familial trauma.
A few things that stood out to me...
- Loved this part where Olga says that white Americans do indeed have culture and New England is the cradle of it
- Poor Prieto, he is a congressman and he is struggling with different parts of his own identity in the face of public perception and I have also had moments like this, where something your parents say that you didn't understand when you were younger, there's a moment where it crystallizes and it's a bittersweet part of growing up.
- This made me laugh, when Prieto's uncle complains about not being invited to a fancy event and says no when Prieto asks him right then. He's like "It's nice to be asked though." This is SO my family and me!!!
- Authenticity is always something really interesting that comes up when you're evaluating culture and who practices it and how you're performing for others at any given moment
- I can see why Olga's mom could be the leader of an organization because she is just super persuasive and she writes beautifully. Here, she wrote "You must remember... even people who were once your sails can become your anchors." It was late when I read this but I did tear up at that. The way relationships can evolve and how you grieve for them.
- Fun fact - my family name is Reyes so did I love that it was Reggie's last name? No because I have mixed feelings about him but yes, it's always fun to see your name recognized. Also, yes, Filipinos have Spanish in them. It's called Spanish colonialism!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Rape, and Sexism
marthaiselin's review
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Xenophobia, Sexual violence, Addiction, Sexual harassment, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Drug abuse, Grief, Racism, Colonisation, Suicide, Sexism, Rape, and Mental illness
Moderate: Abortion, Alcohol, Infertility, and Alcoholism
korinnagarcia's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.5
Let me start this by saying that I very much enjoyed this book. As a second generation Mexican American, I related a lot to Olga and Prieto. Their struggle of feeling like they weren’t American enough or Puerto Rican enough and that both sides made them feel less than is something I think a lot of us deal with. I think this book can appeal to a lot of different people…there’s plot lines tackling subjects that range from loss, abandonment, identity and trauma to capitalism, elitism, privilege, corruption and radical revolution.
The book was a tad slow at first and was then jam packed at the end. The jump forward in time with a few lines about where everyone ended up felt very rushed but everything was wrapped up and it ended without any lingering questions. For this being the author’s debut novel, it was very ambitious and overall, it paid off.
Now for a bit of a rant about the mother, Blanca. It’s been a while since a literary character has made me so viscerally angry. Being a mother doesn’t justify manipulating your children when they don’t follow the life path you see fit, I’m sorry but you lost that “privilege” when you abandoned your children. Blanca had no right and all of the audacity! To abandon your children and then emotionally manipulate them by sending them insufferable letters throughout their lives, essentially scolding them for not being the “right kind of Puerto Rican”. I was enraged! I understand that she felt her life had more purpose and meaning and she never wanted to be a mother. I can even respect that she wanted to fight for her people and create real change in Puerto Rico… but then just do that lol stop dragging your poor children into it when you selfishly see fit. You can’t say you gave up your family for the greater good of Puerto Rico and to liberate the oppressed and then oppress your own children.
Now for a bit of a rant about the mother, Blanca. It’s been a while since a literary character has made me so viscerally angry. Being a mother doesn’t justify manipulating your children when they don’t follow the life path you see fit, I’m sorry but you lost that “privilege” when you abandoned your children. Blanca had no right and all of the audacity! To abandon your children and then emotionally manipulate them by sending them insufferable letters throughout their lives, essentially scolding them for not being the “right kind of Puerto Rican”. I was enraged! I understand that she felt her life had more purpose and meaning and she never wanted to be a mother. I can even respect that she wanted to fight for her people and create real change in Puerto Rico… but then just do that lol stop dragging your poor children into it when you selfishly see fit. You can’t say you gave up your family for the greater good of Puerto Rico and to liberate the oppressed and then oppress your own children.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Trafficking, Abandonment, and Homophobia
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Drug use, Gaslighting, Drug abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Abortion, Sexism, and Stalking
lizzisok's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Abandonment, Alcohol, Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Suicide
redwrapped's review
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
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
5.0
This is one of the books that I can see being touted as a strong contender for awards honoring the American experience and for best debut novel, and rightfully so, due to the breadth of unflinching honesty woven throughout Olga Dies Dreaming.
Olga Acevedo is an American woman facing the internal struggle that so many feel, to be seen as she sees herself, yet Olga isn't necessarily sure of who she is or to whom her loyalty is strongest. She has lived her entire life in Brooklyn and feels American, but her family hails from Puerto Rico. She feels alienated by the rich, white WASP clientele she serves as an elite wedding planner, and is crucially separated by distance and emotional warmth toward her mother.
Her mother, Blanca, left Olga, her brother Prieto, and their father behind in Brooklyn to try to embolden and free Puerto Rico from the United States through revolutionary action, becoming a fugitive for terroristic ties and disappearing entirely except for barbed, critical letters sent to her family members, guiding them what to do. Blanca's dedication to the cause is stronger than to her children or her marriage.
The theme circulates around love and all the complexities of it: love for your country, love for family, love for life, and love for someone new. Despite how heavy and political it can be, the tone is never cynical, but made up of hope and resilience, and that adds a tender sort of strength to each of the love stories in here.
While reading this, I was compelled to read about the history of Puerto Rican resistance and mainland America's lack of aid or respect toward the archipelago. My viewpoint toward statehood or the United States relinquishing control over Puerto Rico has been altered, due to the compelling argument in this book and for the fact it drove me to independently research the toll and fundamental inadequacies that Puerto Rico faces due to its indeterminate status as a territory and not as a state with the level of protective measures for emergency aid as another state would have, usage of natural resources for electricity, etc.
Thanks to Flatiron Books and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Olga Acevedo is an American woman facing the internal struggle that so many feel, to be seen as she sees herself, yet Olga isn't necessarily sure of who she is or to whom her loyalty is strongest. She has lived her entire life in Brooklyn and feels American, but her family hails from Puerto Rico. She feels alienated by the rich, white WASP clientele she serves as an elite wedding planner, and is crucially separated by distance and emotional warmth toward her mother.
Her mother, Blanca, left Olga, her brother Prieto, and their father behind in Brooklyn to try to embolden and free Puerto Rico from the United States through revolutionary action, becoming a fugitive for terroristic ties and disappearing entirely except for barbed, critical letters sent to her family members, guiding them what to do. Blanca's dedication to the cause is stronger than to her children or her marriage.
The theme circulates around love and all the complexities of it: love for your country, love for family, love for life, and love for someone new. Despite how heavy and political it can be, the tone is never cynical, but made up of hope and resilience, and that adds a tender sort of strength to each of the love stories in here.
While reading this, I was compelled to read about the history of Puerto Rican resistance and mainland America's lack of aid or respect toward the archipelago. My viewpoint toward statehood or the United States relinquishing control over Puerto Rico has been altered, due to the compelling argument in this book and for the fact it drove me to independently research the toll and fundamental inadequacies that Puerto Rico faces due to its indeterminate status as a territory and not as a state with the level of protective measures for emergency aid as another state would have, usage of natural resources for electricity, etc.
Thanks to Flatiron Books and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, Cancer, Colonisation, Xenophobia, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Sexism, Homophobia, Gaslighting, and Drug abuse
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