A review by districtreads
The Taste of Sugar by Marisel Vera
4.0
I picked up THE TASTE OF SUGAR by Marisel Cruz after a glowing review by @bookofcinz - and this book moved me deeply.
Spanning seven decades of Puerto Rican history, the book reveals stories of Puerto Rican joy, grit, endurance, pain - including the tragic treatment of the “puertorriquenos" and Japanese laborers in the Hawaiian sugar plantations.
There’s a vibrant cast of characters In this novel - from Raul Vega, the patriarch and a womanizer - to his son, Vicente, a coffee farmer who falls in love with an upper-class woman named Valentina. Valentina, a survivor, ends up leaving her comfortable city life to live and work with Vicente on his farm. Love is a common theme threaded thoughout this book - romantic love, familial love, the love a mother has for her children, and sacrificial love.
Cruz sheds light on Puerto Rico’s long history of being treated poorly by the nations that colonize it. When the Spanish-American War leads to Puerto Rico moving from Spanish to American ownership, the Vega family’s fortunes change rapidly. A devastating hurricane adds to their grief as the Vega family loses almost everything they have built and even more tragically - some of the people they love. They are forced to make a choice - stay in poverty, or try their chances in the Hawaiian sugar plantations.
Written in a mix of Spanish and English, I recommend keeping a dictionary at hand if you’re not a native or confident speaker - however there is always enough context to figure out what was said. The Spanish writing throughout add to the story - you truly feel immersed in the history and the Vega family’s lives.
I highly recommend this read for fans of Pachinko, magical realism, and Rosario Ferré.
Spanning seven decades of Puerto Rican history, the book reveals stories of Puerto Rican joy, grit, endurance, pain - including the tragic treatment of the “puertorriquenos" and Japanese laborers in the Hawaiian sugar plantations.
There’s a vibrant cast of characters In this novel - from Raul Vega, the patriarch and a womanizer - to his son, Vicente, a coffee farmer who falls in love with an upper-class woman named Valentina. Valentina, a survivor, ends up leaving her comfortable city life to live and work with Vicente on his farm. Love is a common theme threaded thoughout this book - romantic love, familial love, the love a mother has for her children, and sacrificial love.
Cruz sheds light on Puerto Rico’s long history of being treated poorly by the nations that colonize it. When the Spanish-American War leads to Puerto Rico moving from Spanish to American ownership, the Vega family’s fortunes change rapidly. A devastating hurricane adds to their grief as the Vega family loses almost everything they have built and even more tragically - some of the people they love. They are forced to make a choice - stay in poverty, or try their chances in the Hawaiian sugar plantations.
Written in a mix of Spanish and English, I recommend keeping a dictionary at hand if you’re not a native or confident speaker - however there is always enough context to figure out what was said. The Spanish writing throughout add to the story - you truly feel immersed in the history and the Vega family’s lives.
I highly recommend this read for fans of Pachinko, magical realism, and Rosario Ferré.