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A review by spinesinaline
America Is Not the Heart by Elaine Castillo
challenging
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
That was excellent.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Donnabella Mortel and that may be the best decision I make all year! She’s fantastic, I love the way she’s able to change her voice for each character. It really came across in the end as a full cast and each character so recognizable and fleshed-out. Also, if you’re like me and are very unfamiliar with Tagalog and Ilocano, Martel’s pronunciation is really helpful in following the story. I’d still love to get a print copy so I can look up the words I don’t know but there’s enough to go on in context that you shouldn’t have any trouble if you don’t know these languages.
I’m also unfamiliar with the history of the Philippines so there was a lot of new, horrific, information in this book, though if you do know this history you’ll likely know what’s coming. Much of the book is set in America after Hero arrives from the Philippines and stays with her uncle and his family but there are many flashbacks of her and Paz’, her uncle’s wife, life in the Philippines, the losses they endured, and what ultimately brought them to the States. This is an incredibly heavy book and the author doesn’t shy away from the torture and abuse some of the characters faced in the past so please be mindful going in. I have more information on content warnings above.
While Hero is the main character, the prologue is actually from the perspective of a different character and in the audiobook it was an hour long! I’ve never read a prologue that long before but from that point on I was hooked. It’s such a gripping start to the story and I wanted to know everything there was to know about these characters.
The ending was beautiful and funny and a little painful, and just, what a good read.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Donnabella Mortel and that may be the best decision I make all year! She’s fantastic, I love the way she’s able to change her voice for each character. It really came across in the end as a full cast and each character so recognizable and fleshed-out. Also, if you’re like me and are very unfamiliar with Tagalog and Ilocano, Martel’s pronunciation is really helpful in following the story. I’d still love to get a print copy so I can look up the words I don’t know but there’s enough to go on in context that you shouldn’t have any trouble if you don’t know these languages.
I’m also unfamiliar with the history of the Philippines so there was a lot of new, horrific, information in this book, though if you do know this history you’ll likely know what’s coming. Much of the book is set in America after Hero arrives from the Philippines and stays with her uncle and his family but there are many flashbacks of her and Paz’, her uncle’s wife, life in the Philippines, the losses they endured, and what ultimately brought them to the States. This is an incredibly heavy book and the author doesn’t shy away from the torture and abuse some of the characters faced in the past so please be mindful going in. I have more information on content warnings above.
While Hero is the main character, the prologue is actually from the perspective of a different character and in the audiobook it was an hour long! I’ve never read a prologue that long before but from that point on I was hooked. It’s such a gripping start to the story and I wanted to know everything there was to know about these characters.
The ending was beautiful and funny and a little painful, and just, what a good read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, Torture, Homophobia, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Police brutality, Colonisation, Medical content, Physical abuse, Grief, Racism, and Terminal illness
Minor: Rape and Vomit