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A review by annreadsabook
Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo
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
4.25
Family Lore is a strong, stirring novel that explores the stories we inherit, past lives we’ve lived, and the paths we choose to walk in light of all these things.
We’re initially introduced to Flor, an aging woman with the ability to predict when others will die—but her family is shocked when Flor herself requests that they give her a "living wake." Has Flor foreseen her own death? Or possibly the death of another loved one? In light of Flor’s request, her family, including her daughter Ona, grapple with both current and past family dynamics—and in doing so, perhaps they will all come out at the other side with some deeper meaning of themselves and their family.
I loved the ways that Family Lore explores experiences of womanhood across age and time; in this book we’re shown numerous women who all are forced to consider and reconsider what it means to fight for some semblance of agency and power in a world that so often is meant to grind women down. Acevedo paints a portrait of beautifully complicated women who struggle to be the centerpieces of the own story, be it through some working of inner magic, reliance on those around them, or remembrance of days past. And, she explores the ties that bind these women, to various and differing degrees, to the Dominican Republic.
Throughout the novel, Acevedo emphasizes the strength of the collective: each individual woman in this story of course has her unique struggles and desires that are often complicated and thwarted by other family members, but there is a profound power that emerges when these women are gathered together. There is beauty both in the individual and in the togetherness. And, of course, I have to shout out the incredible prose in this book—Acevedo is an amazing poet whose voice shines in the narrative form.
If you’re looking for a deeply character-driven story that is not terribly linear or fast-paced, you’ll be in for a treat with this one! Family Lore is out August 1—thanks so much Ecco Books for the gifted ARC!
We’re initially introduced to Flor, an aging woman with the ability to predict when others will die—but her family is shocked when Flor herself requests that they give her a "living wake." Has Flor foreseen her own death? Or possibly the death of another loved one? In light of Flor’s request, her family, including her daughter Ona, grapple with both current and past family dynamics—and in doing so, perhaps they will all come out at the other side with some deeper meaning of themselves and their family.
I loved the ways that Family Lore explores experiences of womanhood across age and time; in this book we’re shown numerous women who all are forced to consider and reconsider what it means to fight for some semblance of agency and power in a world that so often is meant to grind women down. Acevedo paints a portrait of beautifully complicated women who struggle to be the centerpieces of the own story, be it through some working of inner magic, reliance on those around them, or remembrance of days past. And, she explores the ties that bind these women, to various and differing degrees, to the Dominican Republic.
Throughout the novel, Acevedo emphasizes the strength of the collective: each individual woman in this story of course has her unique struggles and desires that are often complicated and thwarted by other family members, but there is a profound power that emerges when these women are gathered together. There is beauty both in the individual and in the togetherness. And, of course, I have to shout out the incredible prose in this book—Acevedo is an amazing poet whose voice shines in the narrative form.
If you’re looking for a deeply character-driven story that is not terribly linear or fast-paced, you’ll be in for a treat with this one! Family Lore is out August 1—thanks so much Ecco Books for the gifted ARC!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility and Infidelity