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A review by msgabbythelibrarian
The Ghosts of Rancho Espanto by Adrianna Cuevas
2.0
I have many feelings about this book.
Firstly, I dislike magical realism. I like realistic fiction. I like books with magical elements. But when you start throwing in wormholes and alternative (or are they?) realities and timelines, I'm just not a fan. I was hoping we would stick with the ghosts/supernatural elements of the story.
The highlighting of both Cuban and Korean culture was brilliant. I think it's important to show different ethnicities of people working so well together as both Rafa and Jennie do in this book. From the various different languages spoken, to the homage to popular snacks, readers will learn a lot about each group of people.
The Ghosts of Rancho Espanto has a lot of difficult themes lying under the surface, not the least of which is Rafa's mom dying of cancer. How this, death of a parent, and a soldier recovering from PTSD is addressed was one of enlightening normalcy. All of the human emotions found were present; no political messages were sent. The storyline was about grief and how the ripples effect us. You can't look past that.
So why is it a two?? It's due to the genre. That made this book just okay.
Firstly, I dislike magical realism. I like realistic fiction. I like books with magical elements. But when you start throwing in wormholes and alternative (or are they?) realities and timelines, I'm just not a fan. I was hoping we would stick with the ghosts/supernatural elements of the story.
The highlighting of both Cuban and Korean culture was brilliant. I think it's important to show different ethnicities of people working so well together as both Rafa and Jennie do in this book. From the various different languages spoken, to the homage to popular snacks, readers will learn a lot about each group of people.
The Ghosts of Rancho Espanto has a lot of difficult themes lying under the surface, not the least of which is Rafa's mom dying of cancer. How this, death of a parent, and a soldier recovering from PTSD is addressed was one of enlightening normalcy. All of the human emotions found were present; no political messages were sent. The storyline was about grief and how the ripples effect us. You can't look past that.
Spoiler
It's unknown if Unknown Timeline Rafa and our character Rafa's final outcome with their mom is one and the same. The sadness of impending death does loom over the story. You feel the pain. And you know what, kids live with that also. So it is okay. <\spoiler>So why is it a two?? It's due to the genre. That made this book just okay.