A review by annreadsabook
Dominicana by Angie Cruz

challenging emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Dominicana is such a powerful and stirring read—I tore through it over the course of 24 hours because I couldn’t put it down! The novel begins with Ana Canción, a fifteen-year-old girl living in the Dominican Republic when she is married off to a 32-year-old man, with whom she moves to New York City. We watch from afar as the Dominican Republic descends into sociopolitical upheaval, and we feel Ana’s despair at being so far removed from the land and people she loves. This book is a close look at life as a young immigrant, the struggles of learning a new language and navigating a new country, and what it means to be a girl subjugated to the whims and wills of men. Despite her young age, Ana is forced to grow in self-confidence and independence; I mourned that she was forced into early adulthood due to the significant trials and hardships she faced.

Similar to Severance, something that took a lot of getting used to was the lack of quotation marks. For one thing (and this may just be a personal problem), I found it difficult to distinguish when people were speaking from narration or internal thoughts. Stylistically, however, I think it actually lends itself to a more internalized way of engaging with the narrative—you are in Ana’s head almost completely. The lack of quotations, for me, additionally reflected the isolation Ana felt in a foreign country combined with her forced marriage to an abusive man.

Overall, this was such an excellent and challenging read—it’s not very long, but it holds a lot.
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