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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
Story of a Haitian-American girl who grows up in NYC, thinking her Haitian father was abused in a prison in Haiti, only to find he was in fact a prison guard who did the abusing. Devastating, beautiful/poetic writing style. Weave a story of a variety of people impacted by the father’s actions. (Dew breaker means "torturer" in Creole. It refers to the person who first walks through the grass disturbing the dew.)
I really enjoyed this novel. The story was very interesting. It was a bit confusing to start because every chapter was a different perspective, but once I discovered that’s what she was doing, I enjoyed trying to figure out that person’s connection to the main characters.
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Such a great novel. My students have been doing a really good job with this book.
This is about a dew breaker (member of Duvalier's macoute force - torturers and general controlling force in 1960's Haiti). More than that, though, it's about the people whose lives he has affected. His wife and daughter, those he tortured and killed and their families, those who board in his house. The book starts at the end - he is living in New York City, working as a barber, and throws his daughter's statue of him in a lake; he finally tells her the truth about his having been a torturer. This is told in his daughter's voice and what follows is in the voices of all the other characters. The dew breaker himself doesn't get a voice until the very end and even that last chapter is mostly his wife's voice.
Themes: 60's Haiti, dealing with your past, hiding your past, lies and truth, the pain of being a victim, the pain of regret, honor, miracles
I was amazed at how emotional my reaction to this book was, especially towards the end. I was really upset when the dew breaker lied to Anne and she married him. Even though she knew the truth, it made me cry. She thought of herself as his miracle though - she wanted to be how he changed his ways. That's amazing forgiveness she has. I enjoyed that this book used so many different perspectives to tell it's story. I always knew more than the characters did, which made things more painful to watch but allowed me an amazing bigger picture view.
Themes: 60's Haiti, dealing with your past, hiding your past, lies and truth, the pain of being a victim, the pain of regret, honor, miracles
I was amazed at how emotional my reaction to this book was, especially towards the end. I was really upset when the dew breaker lied to Anne and she married him. Even though she knew the truth, it made me cry. She thought of herself as his miracle though - she wanted to be how he changed his ways. That's amazing forgiveness she has. I enjoyed that this book used so many different perspectives to tell it's story. I always knew more than the characters did, which made things more painful to watch but allowed me an amazing bigger picture view.
". . . had never imagined that people like Beatrice existed, men and women whose tremendous agonies filled every blank space in their lives”
“My mother used to say that we'll all have three death: the one when our breath leaves our bodies to rejoin the air, the one when we are out back in the earth, and the one that will erase us completely and no one will remember us at all.”
This is a book of stunning writing, where I could pull-out quote after quote worth "saving". She built amazing characters in the separate, but interlocking stories.
“My mother used to say that we'll all have three death: the one when our breath leaves our bodies to rejoin the air, the one when we are out back in the earth, and the one that will erase us completely and no one will remember us at all.”
This is a book of stunning writing, where I could pull-out quote after quote worth "saving". She built amazing characters in the separate, but interlocking stories.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Gun violence, Violence, Vomit
Minor: Addiction, Child death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Blood
I enjoyed the short stories in this collection. Thanks to having read [b: Brother I'm Dying|430027|Brother, I'm Dying|Edwidge Danticat|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320411003s/430027.jpg|3100443] beforehand, I can definitely see a lot of real life similarities between Edwidge Danticat's character's background (i.e., a character that's a preacher, character's immigrating to America after violent actions taken against them, etc.) that draw from her Haitian family.
However, my main qualm with this book is that the main character, "The Dew Breaker," story feels underwritten.All the characters that he affected who had chapters/stories within this book presented this particular character in a negative light that was just begging for Danticat to provide a story where The Dew Breaker either repented and told his own story through his own words instead of his wife or daughter's words. In the end, I felt as if I only got his story through other characters' voices. The final chapter of this short story collection felt anti-climactic. Furthermore, the way he and his wife meet and "fall in love" gave me the feeling that these characters were underwritten.
If you enjoy this book, you'd probably really enjoy Danticat's short story collection, [b: Krik? Krak!|600404|Krik? Krak!|Edwidge Danticat|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1306476363s/600404.jpg|2903], too.
Note: If you listen to the audio version, I'd definitely suggest sticking with it past the first story since this time around, it took Robin Miles a good story or two to really get in her groove with the Haitian voices. Otherwise, she did a good job, but not as masterful as with [b: Brother, I'm Dying.]
However, my main qualm with this book is that the main character, "The Dew Breaker," story feels underwritten.
If you enjoy this book, you'd probably really enjoy Danticat's short story collection, [b: Krik? Krak!|600404|Krik? Krak!|Edwidge Danticat|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1306476363s/600404.jpg|2903], too.
Note: If you listen to the audio version, I'd definitely suggest sticking with it past the first story since this time around, it took Robin Miles a good story or two to really get in her groove with the Haitian voices. Otherwise, she did a good job, but not as masterful as with [b: Brother, I'm Dying.]
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
A quiet Haitian man in NYC with an artist daughter, a secret he and his wife have been hiding from her from their time in Haiti is slowly unearthed: this is the basic plot of Danticat’s beautifully written novel. The nine parts could stand alone as short stories, but they work together to show the effects of revolution, violence, and the choices made during those times on all the people around you, whether you’re aware of them or not. The stories and the topics in this novel cover kept calling to mind the visual of a ripple in a pond.
Some people have complained about the disjointed nature of the novel but I found it wonderful, especially as a reflection of memory, which is never linear.
Some people have complained about the disjointed nature of the novel but I found it wonderful, especially as a reflection of memory, which is never linear.