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ninascozydayreads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The Queens of Sarmiento Park – Camila Sosa Villada
“In our house of travestis, sweetness leavened death. In that house, death could be beautiful.” – Camila Sosa Villada, The Queens of Sarmiento Park
Whenever I have to read a book for uni, I’m always a bit worried at first. It’s something residual from my English Lit undergrad, where I had to read all the classics that I didn’t really care for. But this book, this one was different.
The Queens of Sarmiento Park is real. It’s vulnerable. It’s painful and it’s beautiful and somehow that pain makes it beautiful and the beauty makes it painful. It’s a story about making your own family, finding some place to belong against all odds. it also doesn’t shy away from the hard topics (and there are a lot of trigger warnings for this book): there were moments where I audibly gasped and had to put the book down to compose myself. But that’s what a good book does, right?
What I enjoyed most was to see queerness in a non-western part of the world. It was recognisable, but also so very different. I think this book is worth picking up simply for that.
Last but not least, I also loved the magical realism in this story. There was careful thought behind the transformations, the animals, and though I’ve not discovered all meanings quite yet, I can certainly appreciate them.
But what would a she-wolf stand for???
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Rape, and Violence