Scan barcode
A review by mikarala
Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-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
4.25
So, this book doesn't really have a plot.
Or, okay, there's a shade of one, but really, it doesn't take shape until after the 3/4 mark, and up until that point it's basically a character study with seemingly never-ending set-up. The actual climax of the story (admittedly it's actually more of an anti-climax) is well-foreshadowed and fits in with all of the elements that came before it, but if I'm being honest, I think the pacing of this novel is whack and sometime around the middle of the story I was really wondering where the hell things were going and kind of had to push through it.
However, I do have a really high opinion of this novel overall because I think it handles some really fascinating messages and themes in an incredibly sensitive and complex way. Basically, this novel tells the story of Olga and Prieto, siblings in their early 40's who are still struggling with the ramifications of their mother abandoning them when they were teenagers in order to support la revolucion. Rejecting their mother's radicalism, both of them work within the confines of the White liberal agenda, something that neither are fully satisfied with, as it obviously isn't that concerned with serving their Brown community or their Puerto Rican heritage. Both of them also still want to please the mother, who writes them letters encouraging more radical attitudes and guilting them for their failures to live up to her anarchist legacy.
I really enjoyed how layered this message was. Olga and Prieto both feel slightly empty and aimless as they try to work within systems that are built to limit them as minorities. However, it also sharply criticizes their mother's narcissistic martyr syndrome, who believes that she's saving the world even as she's manipulating her own children into serving her own personal agenda. I really liked that the author seemed to land somewhere in between, with the message that true change comes from community action and pressure against the establishment, not one radical's violent personal agenda.
Overall, fantastic characterization, and an incredibly vibrant portrait of New York's Puerto Rican community, which really jumps off the page. I didn't like the decision to make Dick a POV character,considering what he does to Olga , even though those chapters don't actually make him sympathetic or likable. I definitely recommend, with the caveat that this is more of a character study than a true narrative.
Or, okay, there's a shade of one, but really, it doesn't take shape until after the 3/4 mark, and up until that point it's basically a character study with seemingly never-ending set-up. The actual climax of the story (admittedly it's actually more of an anti-climax) is well-foreshadowed and fits in with all of the elements that came before it, but if I'm being honest, I think the pacing of this novel is whack and sometime around the middle of the story I was really wondering where the hell things were going and kind of had to push through it.
However, I do have a really high opinion of this novel overall because I think it handles some really fascinating messages and themes in an incredibly sensitive and complex way. Basically, this novel tells the story of Olga and Prieto, siblings in their early 40's who are still struggling with the ramifications of their mother abandoning them when they were teenagers in order to support la revolucion. Rejecting their mother's radicalism, both of them work within the confines of the White liberal agenda, something that neither are fully satisfied with, as it obviously isn't that concerned with serving their Brown community or their Puerto Rican heritage. Both of them also still want to please the mother, who writes them letters encouraging more radical attitudes and guilting them for their failures to live up to her anarchist legacy.
I really enjoyed how layered this message was. Olga and Prieto both feel slightly empty and aimless as they try to work within systems that are built to limit them as minorities. However, it also sharply criticizes their mother's narcissistic martyr syndrome, who believes that she's saving the world even as she's manipulating her own children into serving her own personal agenda. I really liked that the author seemed to land somewhere in between, with the message that true change comes from community action and pressure against the establishment, not one radical's violent personal agenda.
Overall, fantastic characterization, and an incredibly vibrant portrait of New York's Puerto Rican community, which really jumps off the page. I didn't like the decision to make Dick a POV character,
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Emotional abuse, and Abandonment
Moderate: Outing, Rape, Homophobia, and Death of parent