From the Bookshelf of Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge…
Find A Copy At
Group Discussions About This Book
No group discussions for this book yet.
What Members Thought
I was really torn between 3 & 4 stars on this one. I give the writing a 4, the storytelling a 5, and the treatment of women a 2. It was a compelling story and a quick read, chock full of fun nerdy details, vivid descriptions, and some skillfully-captured, raw emotions (which I find to be all too rare in today's gimmick-loving lit). However, I think Diaz is a product of the society within which he grew up, and some of this incessant machismo ended up hitting a nerve as I read. I've read numerous
...more
This was one of those reads where you are challenged from the get-go. Challenged to read annotations, get Spanish translation, to really settle in the minds of these characters living in the diaspora and back home in the DR. Diaz paints a fascinating family saga, feeding us breadcrumbs from the multiple narrators, stringing us along with references to things we will see BLOWN up in full relief chapters later. It's a book that demands your attention but also rewards it.
...more
I had such a hard time getting into this book, and once I got to around page 80, I gave up on it. I felt nothing for the characters and their problems, although I typically connect really well to books whose characters live in my home state as they do in this book, but I couldn't do it here.
...more
I am behind the times on this one, but I am a sucker for copious footnotes.
While I liked this just fine, I'm really sad I didn't love this as much as everyone else. Maybe it had just been overhyped to me. Or the fact that I put it down in the middle for about 4 months probably didn't help either.
...more
Jun 05, 2008
Melissa
marked it as to-read
Aug 29, 2012
vivike
marked it as to-read
Nov 13, 2012
Rebecca
marked it as to-read
Sep 21, 2013
Cindy
marked it as to-read
Jan 18, 2015
Katie
added it
Feb 26, 2016
Arty
added it
May 16, 2017
Kate McCartney
marked it as to-read
