A review by mhverney
How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water by Angie Cruz

3.0

Cara Romero is a 56 year old Dominican woman who has lived in New York’s Washington Heights for decades and is invited to attend 12 sessions with a career counsellor for “senior” workers after she loses her factory job during the recession. I am in two minds about that one. The structure is clever - her whole life story is told as she speaks to her beleaguered career over her 12 sessions, pretty much side-lining the counsellor’s efforts to find her a job, any job. The tension between the two women - the career counsellor is also of Dominican origin, but younger and employed - is excellent and funny. I also liked the back story of how Washington Heights gentrified, and the impact this had on the poorer, original inhabitants. Sadly, I did not really take to Cara. Yes, it is great to have a narrator who is an immigrant, working class and unemployed. Yes, the author tries to portray her as a fully fledged human being and not just as an innocent victims of circumstances. But the whole focus on how great women are at helping each other just did not resonate with me and I grew increasingly irritated by Cara’s refusal to consider job offers because she wanted to continue helping others. Still, it’s a solid three, probably 3.5 stars, well written, often funny and for sure a book I’m glad to have read.