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Cuando era puertorriqueña
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For use in schools and libraries only. The story of a young girl who leaves Puerto Rico for New York's tenements and a chance for success.
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Paperback, 296 pages
Published
October 1994
by Vintage Español
(first published September 20th 1993)
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Start your review of Cuando era puertorriqueña

Midway through women’s history month I gave on my original plans, and chose instead to read primarily memoirs written by remarkable women. Not all of these women may be as well known as others, but they all have the story of their lives to tell. My family immigrated to the United States at the turn of the 20th century so I am often drawn to stories of immigrants from around the world. In her When I Was Puerto Rican, Esmeralda Santiago contrasts her childhood in Puerto Rico and New York and the s
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Apr 12, 2019
Chrissie
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
life-stages,
bio,
audible-uk,
kids,
nyc,
2019-read,
relationships,
returned,
immigrants,
usa
For ME, most of this book was just OK, because most of it revolves around and is clearly written for young adults. I am not a huge fan of this genre. When I picked it up, I was not aware of it being a young adult book. The book is by no means a bad book. I judge it to be a good book for the right audience. It ends when the author has reached the age of fourteen, when she is accepted into a performing arts high school in Manhattan.
Make no mistake, the book is not directed toward adolescents inte ...more
Make no mistake, the book is not directed toward adolescents inte ...more

My coworker once called me a Jibaro because I have family who live in Aibonito, Puerto Rico. Actually at this very moment, my parents who retired, now live there. I remember that beautiful island. Surviving a hurricane, eating mangos, guavas, arroz con gandules, tostones, getting slapped for being a wild child and just being a child growing up on the pearl of the carribean. I enjoyed this book very much, even though my opinion may be biased. Reading this made me greatful for the childhood of whi
...more

This was such a fun light read! Esmeralda Santiago has a way of writing where you feel like you are part of the scene and you are included in her crazy life in Puerto Rico.
Her life was one of chaos and so much learning through culture and mostly to paying attention to her family. Her mother had 11 kids total, Negi being the oldest, but by the end of the book only mentions 7. Her father was loving but a womanizer and would leave Mami for days on end without helping her provide for the kids, alth ...more
Her life was one of chaos and so much learning through culture and mostly to paying attention to her family. Her mother had 11 kids total, Negi being the oldest, but by the end of the book only mentions 7. Her father was loving but a womanizer and would leave Mami for days on end without helping her provide for the kids, alth ...more

Jun 11, 2013
Lisa (Harmonybites)
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Everyone--but Especially Anyone with a Puerto Rican Background
I loved this book beyond reason, but I admit for very personal reasons. This certainly resonated with me in ways someone without a Puerto Rican background wouldn't share, although that doesn't mean they wouldn't appreciate it. Just that my response to it was so personal I'm aware I didn't have an objective response to it at all. It was hard to see Esmeralda Santiago when I was constantly thinking of my own family and what we shared in our experiences and attitudes and background and what we didn
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This isn't a full review, because I read this when it published so many years ago, but I do remember finishing it with a new appreciation for all that my parents went through when they moved from Puerto Rico to New York. A great book that I highly recommend.
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Nov 09, 2008
Kerry
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone who enjoys the story of a remarkable woman.
Shelves:
kerry-s-books,
08-09
When I Was Puerto Rican is the memoir of Esmeralda Santiago, and her journey from a poor young girl living in rural Puerto Rico, to a successful writer based in New York City.
Her story begins in a tin house in Macun. Esmeralda, affectionately called Negi-a shortened version of negra, the Spanish word for black, is the eldest of three children. She has two younger sisters, Delsa and Norma. Her father is a hardworking man, who spends hours of his day outside the home. Negi's mother also works tire ...more
Her story begins in a tin house in Macun. Esmeralda, affectionately called Negi-a shortened version of negra, the Spanish word for black, is the eldest of three children. She has two younger sisters, Delsa and Norma. Her father is a hardworking man, who spends hours of his day outside the home. Negi's mother also works tire ...more

Apr 04, 2010
Jasmine
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
My mother
Recommended to Jasmine by:
LACS 256, Professor Barnett
I really wanted to read this novel because I felt that it could teach me more about what it means to be a Puerto Rican. I read this novel from the perspective of a second generation Puerto Rican, who has never been to Puerto Rico as an adult. The perspective I read this novel from greatly impacted what I got out of this novel. What struck me more than anything about this novel was how much I could relate to Esmeralda Santiago. She, like myself, had a father who eventually faded out of her life.
...more

Mar 29, 2018
Francesca Forrest
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
bridge-to-college
Beautifully written--she vividly recalls her childhood, with concrete imagery that captures the sounds, smells, and feel of the various places she lived in Puerto Rico and, eventually, Brooklyn, in her childhood. Her parents' tumultuous relationship, the times she stays with relatives, surviving a hurricane, being leched on by a creepy piano teacher--these experiences leap off the page at you, along with a kid's eye view of 1950s America's treatment of Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans, male-female
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There is really only one way to describe this book. Vivid. When I was Puerto Rican was such a vivid, engaging memoir. It was one of those books where the writing was so good that the story being told became 1000% more interesting.
Not to say that the story wasn’t interesting, it was just an oversaturated topic. A memoir about moving to America after living your entire adolescence in another country wasn’t new. When I read the book jacket I wasn’t that interested. I was debating putting it down an ...more
Not to say that the story wasn’t interesting, it was just an oversaturated topic. A memoir about moving to America after living your entire adolescence in another country wasn’t new. When I read the book jacket I wasn’t that interested. I was debating putting it down an ...more

This story was wonderful. I love how Esmeralda makes us see life through the eyes of that little girl she once was. Her words are so beautifully descriptive – they took me to the many places she lived and to the era. I also like how honest she was about her parents. She was able to show their tender and loving side as well as their human side, people who made mistakes, even with their children. Many times we forget that our parents are someone other than our mom and our dad.
I am in awe that thi ...more
I am in awe that thi ...more

Found the characters to be interesting. The mother a strong person that seemed to run the family.
Initially, I could not figure out why the father would leave for days at a time; and then found that they
were not married. She was having way too many children which left the oldest to oversee them.
The father seemed very nice and took time to talk and teach Esmeralda. Moving all the time was unsettling but she was able to deal with it and all the new schools. Mother was determined to see that the
chil ...more
Initially, I could not figure out why the father would leave for days at a time; and then found that they
were not married. She was having way too many children which left the oldest to oversee them.
The father seemed very nice and took time to talk and teach Esmeralda. Moving all the time was unsettling but she was able to deal with it and all the new schools. Mother was determined to see that the
chil ...more

Feb 03, 2012
Jenna
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
memoir-biography,
non-fiction
I absolutely loved this memoir! It was beautifully written, from the perspective of the little girl Esmerelda was, growing up in Puerto Rico.

2.5 stars and I almost DNF'ed.
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Negi (as the author was called as a child) was born in Puerto Rico in 1948, and most of the book recalls her childhood on the island. She was the oldest of seven children born to her parents, who had a contentious relationship that often meant the children were uprooted. I truly empathized with Negi's childhood experiences: going to a new school, being separated from family, and the big transition that comes when she's 13: moving to Brooklyn with her mother and siblings. She paints a vivid portr
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The local library has the sequel to this book in English and in Spanish. I read the sequel in English. But this, the original, they have only in Spanish. So I bought and read this book later.
Esmeralda tells her story respectfully and yet with enough honesty to hold my attention. Emeralda used to entertain her family with stories from at least the time she was a very young woman. Her uncle even paid her a dime once to tell another story :-)
In my reading thread: What does in mean to be hispanic?, ...more
Esmeralda tells her story respectfully and yet with enough honesty to hold my attention. Emeralda used to entertain her family with stories from at least the time she was a very young woman. Her uncle even paid her a dime once to tell another story :-)
In my reading thread: What does in mean to be hispanic?, ...more

I love immigrant stories and this was very inspirational. Most of the book focuses on the author's early years in Puerto Rico. It would have been nice to have some back story on her parents and their relationship, but she may not have had that information. The book ends when she gets accepted into the School of Arts in Manhattan which is when I think her life would have just started getting interesting. We know later on she gets a scholarship to Harvard.
...more

Santiago’s lyrical memoir, the first volume of a trilogy, focuses on her childhood in Puerto Rico. She immigrated to New York with her five siblings and mother in the early 60s. As her family grew to eleven children, she excelled in school in spite of poverty and limited English proficiency. She beat the odds and was accepted into the School of Performing Arts in Manhattan, going on to graduate from Harvard. She’s an exceptional storyteller-this reads like nicely crafted novel.

3.5 stars.
This is an interesting memoir, but it does feel old school. Most memoirs I read are much more in-your-face, even graphic. This tale of poverty and immigration is more subtle and slow moving. I loved the descriptions of Puerto Rico and her confusion about her parents' love-hate relationship.
Glad I read it. ...more
This is an interesting memoir, but it does feel old school. Most memoirs I read are much more in-your-face, even graphic. This tale of poverty and immigration is more subtle and slow moving. I loved the descriptions of Puerto Rico and her confusion about her parents' love-hate relationship.
Glad I read it. ...more

First book I've read that accurately captures what it's like to move from the Caribbean to the East Coast. I nearly jumped out of my chair shouting 'Say is sister, that's exactly what it was like!' while reading her description of driving from the airport to her new home in the States.
...more

I fell in love with the vivid imagery as she recounted her youth, from the way her mom seemed to perpetually smell of fresh oregano to the taste of sancocho or creamy rice with milk....to the pigs and the little eggs they collected from their chickens. I was enraptured by this book. I could almost feel the Puerto Rican soil, the jíbara soul. I could hear the novenas being prayed for the dead. I could taste the pasteles and hear the bickering of her parents. I could feel her fear moving to New Yo
...more

My sister insisted that I read this book pretty much nagging me, so I picked it up and couldn't put it down, I absolutely loved the story, I would have like to learn more about Negi's parents and how their relationship started. This story is raw and I felt a lot of emotions reading it. I could relate to how strict her mother was in raising all those kids as both my grandmother and mother were the same way.
Her mother was a very strong women who loved her children fiercely, she did what ever she h ...more
Her mother was a very strong women who loved her children fiercely, she did what ever she h ...more

This has been one of the best books I have ever read. It has to do with a thirteen year old named Esmeralda she has to move to New York after her little brother gets in a bicycle accident and finds out that her father was cheating on her mother. Her brother was riding a bicycle down the street in Puerto Rico when he was 3-4 yrs old his little foot got stuck on the chain and his foot opened up. He had an infection from the grease of the chain and he and his mother had to go to New York to check
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This book concentrates on the life of a young Puerto Rican girl, Esmeralda. Her family, especially her mother, struggles a lot with money and family problems especially after it’s confirmed that Esmeralda’s father is cheating on her mother. By the end of the book, Esmeralda has 11 siblings and her mom is single. They move countless times and Esmeralda is forced to grow up and mature sooner than expected. There are several explicit events in this book that really shocked me because no one as youn
...more

Ms. Santiago does a splendid job showing her readers the turmoil in her life. This honest memoir tells the struggle "Negi" and her sibling have while her parents love and fight constantly. She portrays the serene beauty of the Puerto Rican landscape and describes the delicious food available on the island. Negi must develop responsibility for her siblings long before she is ready as her mother struggles to provide a safe environment for her children and her transient father moves in and out of t
...more

Like many mainstream Americans, I knew little about Puerto Rican life before reading Santiago's memoir. She doesn't minimize the pain of growing up in a poor, rural family where her parents had different views of marriage but she is the opposite of a whiner.
Still by the end of the book her mother's decision to return to the island from New York did not surprise me because Santiago had also described the pleasures of growing up in the countryside, including the network of neighbors who kept their ...more
Still by the end of the book her mother's decision to return to the island from New York did not surprise me because Santiago had also described the pleasures of growing up in the countryside, including the network of neighbors who kept their ...more

This book was a very interesting book to read. It's a true story about the life of Esmeralda Santiago who was born and raised in Puerto Rico. She was a liitle girl who went through a hard time growing up. Her family was really poor and she had a lot of siblings. She sometimes had to cook for her family and even takae care of her siblings. Her father cheated on her mother and soon Esmeralda found out that she had a sister from her dad's side who was close to the same age as her and livesd with he
...more

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I found this gem in a stack of discarded books. The title intrigued me, When I was.. why past tense? And the photo in the front with the full eyebrows- my brows as a teenager. Each chapter opens up with a spanish saying, most of which I recognize from my mami. Even though I was born and raised in New York, Esmeralda's memoir was still so familiar - the food, the large family, the superstitions, the having to serve as your mom's interpreter, the fights between your parents... Thank you Esmeralda
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topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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BookstagramPR: September 2019 - When I Was Puerto Rican | 1 | 9 | Sep 02, 2019 02:10PM | |
Reading Warriors: winter reading | 1 | 6 | Jan 06, 2015 08:29PM | |
When I was Puerto...: Thick Question | 2 | 9 | Apr 22, 2014 03:14PM | |
When I was Puerto...: Golden Line | 1 | 4 | Apr 16, 2014 07:20AM |
Esmeralda Santiago (born 1948 in San Juan, Puerto Rico). Is a renowned Puerto Rican author In 1961, she came to the United States when she was thirteen years old, the eldest in a family that would eventually include eleven children. Ms. Santiago attended New York City's Performing Arts High School, where she majored in drama and dance. After eight years of part-time study at community colleges, sh
...more
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