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formerbookclubpresident's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-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? Yes
4.5
This book...*sigh* THIS BOOK.
This book is great. I really enjoyed it, and really appreciated how the author captured the Nuyorican experience, and at parts even made me cry thinking about my own relationship to Puerto Rico as a mainlander. The struggle of not being enough for either country and culture but still carrying them both proudly could not be better described if she tried. The picture of gentrification that she paints is so real and vivid, and given the author's background you can tell this isn't fiction, she's writing from her own experience.
While I really enjoyed the book, there are a few flaws that I find really hard to get over. Like some other reviewers have mentioned, Prietocontracting HIV just felt cruel and unnecessary and didn't drive his character forward, and felt like a push to get him to come out when that could have been achieved a million different ways .
The chapter withDick SA'ing Olga also felt very unnecessary. There were a million ways Olga could've "failed" her mission with Dick and this was not needed. At. All. Also just casually mentioning how many times she's been SA'd in the past??? Triggering.
Finally, Blanca. As a Puerto Rican person myself, the topic of Puerto Rican liberation (like all political topics) requires nuance. It is something that needs to be presented very carefully in order to make the case for liberation (which I felt like the author was for?? and then switched up at the end of the book???) Blanca's portrayal as a villain, who cares about nothing but Puerto Rican liberation hurts the cause for mainlanders/outsiders trying to understand it. It is now painted as some rebel group(and the bombing??? bffr) . I wish that they had made Blanca questionable, and not outright a villain. It would've humanized her in a way that would make readers sympathize with her and not root against her.
Lastly (and this is my own personal gripe) I wish the author had included a reading list at the end of the book. The novel touches upon so much Puerto Rican history that I would have loved to continue learning about, but because I got it from the library, I don't have the book to go back and look for references to find supplemental materials on.
Overall, I really liked this book and can't wait to read what the other does next. Pa'lante!
This book is great. I really enjoyed it, and really appreciated how the author captured the Nuyorican experience, and at parts even made me cry thinking about my own relationship to Puerto Rico as a mainlander. The struggle of not being enough for either country and culture but still carrying them both proudly could not be better described if she tried. The picture of gentrification that she paints is so real and vivid, and given the author's background you can tell this isn't fiction, she's writing from her own experience.
While I really enjoyed the book, there are a few flaws that I find really hard to get over. Like some other reviewers have mentioned, Prieto
The chapter with
Finally, Blanca. As a Puerto Rican person myself, the topic of Puerto Rican liberation (like all political topics) requires nuance. It is something that needs to be presented very carefully in order to make the case for liberation (which I felt like the author was for?? and then switched up at the end of the book???) Blanca's portrayal as a villain, who cares about nothing but Puerto Rican liberation hurts the cause for mainlanders/outsiders trying to understand it. It is now painted as some rebel group
Lastly (and this is my own personal gripe) I wish the author had included a reading list at the end of the book. The novel touches upon so much Puerto Rican history that I would have loved to continue learning about, but because I got it from the library, I don't have the book to go back and look for references to find supplemental materials on.
Overall, I really liked this book and can't wait to read what the other does next. Pa'lante!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Classism
Minor: Infertility
annabulkowski's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Violence, Abortion, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail