Stories of Little Women and Grown-up Girls

by Sonia Rivera-Valdés

Stories of Little Women and Grown-up Girls is a wise book in which its protagonists, even in the most adverse of circumstances, whether gently or going against social conventions, actively participate in the creation of an alternative culture that is mestiza, feminist and cosmopolitan, as well as committed to a transformation of patriarchal society and the myths that it sustains about women. Through agile and precise language tender at times, scrawny when necessary erotism, and sometimes ironic and extremely bitter humor in some stories, take us through well elaborated plots with unpredictable endings that are impossible to put aside once we have started to read them. The book contains ten short stories in which the protagonists differ in age, nationality, the problems they face, and personality, but share several fundamental they are the subjects of their destinies, not the objects, even when sometimes this decision comes from their unconscious and is expressed in the honesty and bravery with which they face life. The second characteristic that unites them is the way in which they reflect about themselves and their circumstances,which are sometimes heartwrenching. They are not sorry for themselves and do not feel guilty for their mistakes and misadventures that could hold them back from acting and making the decisions they need to make in order to change the situation that burdens them. They do what they have to do without sentimentalism and without lurking in their pain. They act with a sincerity that drives the reader to feel a profound empathy for these characters. In the Deepest Seed of the Lemon, during a discussion which concludes with a sentence which leaves the reader perplexed by its sagacity and bitter irony, Martirio, the woman from New York, and Rocío, from Habana, expose their reasons, which are legitimate in both cases, why they defend their decisions, one for living in Cuba, the other for living in the United States.

176 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2003

Reviews

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great collection of short stories, with one exception. I know because even after about 2 months, I can still recall the plotlines of at least three of the stories. One of the little girl characters talks about the "confused precision" of her family life but the "clear abstraction" of the stories that her nanny tells her. That "clear abstraction" phrase seems like such a great description of a lot of Spanish and some Eastern European literature to me.

There's another story that explores something I've always
found fascinating- how some people grow up after a miserable childhood to lead perfectly normal adult lives, and others just fall apart after somewhat less traumatic experiences.

Then my favorite quote from another story: "In life there are Miracles and there are little miracles, she told herself. The Miracles are easy to identify: inexplicable events that save your life, or get you a job, or find you
somewhere to live at the moment when you don't have a place, or make you meet a person destined to be important to you. However, there are coincidences, trivial in appearance, whose hidden meaning we only understand when we relate them to a past event. She called them little miracles, and those, if you don't pay attention, pass by unnoticed."

Overall, an excellent read while sitting in my favorite
coffee shop one Saturday morning. I couldn't get into the last story-drunken/high rants about one's life issues are rarely entertaining to me even when I'm acquainted with the person. I couldn't bring myself to read more than a few pages. But really, that was the only downside.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this author and only wish she had more of her work published. These stories are not quite as captivating as those inher first collection, Historias Prohibidas de Marta Veneranda, but they are still compelling (and very sexy). Needless to say, these are best enjoyed in Spanish.

[Terri]

Stories of Little Women and Grown-up Girls by Sonia Rivera-Valdes (2007)