Algonquin Books How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents

I must say that my feelings about this novel were largely coloured by the final chapter, which included a very unpleasant (and gratuitous) incident with a cat that upset me a lot and led to me getting rid of the book shortly after. This was a pity, as there was a lot to enjoy in this skilful story of immigration. And anyone who's not as fanatical about cats as I am might not find the last chapter mattered so much.The Garcia girls - Carla, Sandra (Sandi), Yolanda (YoYo) and Sofia (Fifi) grow up in the Dominican Republic in a wealthy household, but their idyllic childhood comes to an end when their doctor father is threatened by the Trujillo dictatorship and the family is forced to move to New York. In New York, the sisters try to adapt to the American way of life in the Swinging 1960s and politically and socially conscious 1970s, to the suspicion of their very traditional father. The girls end up leading very different lives. All four marry, three get divorced, two (Sandi and Yolanda) have breakdowns. The youngest, Sofia, marries a German, and thus incurs her father's everlasting suspicion. Yolanda becomes a writer and later a university teacher. And, however American they try to be, to a greater or lesser degree all the sisters feel the pull back to their beloved Island, and the life they left there, and their memories will not leave them.Alvarez tells the story in 'reverse order' - the first part deals with the Garcia girls as adults, including Yolanda's return to the Dominican Republic to visit family, Sofia's relationship with her German husband, and Sandi and Yoyo's breakdowns; the second with their teenage and childhood experiences in the US, going further back in time with each chapter; and the final section with their memories of the Dominican Republic, starting with the decision to leave the island and going back through to early memories of Sandi and Yolanda - almost as if Alvarez is making the point that early childhood has proved the prime factor in shaping the girls' lives. The structure is very loose, almost as though the book is a series of linked short stories about the same characters, rather than a novel. There are some beautiful sections. Alvarez is also a poet, and this is apparent in her sumptuous descriptive language, particularly when she describes the Dominican Republic, and childhood memories. There are also some memorable scenes, including Yolanda's return to her native country and visit to elderly relatives, Yolanda's memories of her mother's attempts to become an inventor in their early days in New York, a birthday party the girls throw for their elderly father and Sandi's memories of childhood and of when she saw a sculptor at work in his studio. The narrative flicks between sisters and alights on certain points in their lives, missing a great deal out, and for me this was a major weakness in the book. I felt that the four sisters never quite got defined as individuals (except perhaps Yolanda, who Alvarez went on to write another book about) and that we never learnt quite enough about any of them or how their lives turned out. Carla and Fifi, in particular, were quite thinly defined and Alvarez only focused on them briefly. I also found that the 'reverse order' narrative left the book feeling slightly unfinished - for me, I would have liked a return to the present at the end to tie the story together. However, I did find that Alvarez's depictions of immigrant life in New York, and of four girls trying to adapt to a very different culture to their birth one, were moving and convincing, and I found the information about the Dominican Republic (about which I knew little) fascinating. I also liked the loving relationship (despite Carlos Garcia's conservatism) between the girls and their parents. An interesting read in all, and a quick one - I read it in a day - but I suspect there may be more content, and more detail of character in Alvarez's later novels, two of which are on my 'to read' pile.

Julia Alvarez’s How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents is not your typical novel. A tale of four sisters who immigrated from the Dominican Republic, their father fleeing a dictator, is told in reverse order, with the first section set during their adult years in the US, the middle section their teen years, and the final section depicting all that led up to the defection. Furthermore, the tale is not a linear story, but rather a series of anecdotal stories, some in third person, some in first person (told by varied sisters,) and one that is told in the first person “we,” seemingly told by one of the sisters but all four are told about, and thus one gets the strange impression that all four are telling this part of the story. Strange indeed. But artful. Alvarez is a fine writer and this, her first of many books she has written in her lifetime, is a celebrated novel. First published in 1991, the story is still timely because the plight of the girls can be applied to those from any number of countries in our world today, and the immigrant experience not only appeals to immigrants but almost anyone who has grown up in the US amid racism, sexism, and anti-diversitysim. Alvarez is masterful, using this unusual method of storytelling to her advantage, always keeping us focused on these four girls as they ride the storms of their lives.

Was the first to arrive of 7 books ordered on the same day.

I have chosen this book because I have already read another one by Julia Alvarez and I have liked it very much. I can say I wasn't disapppointed: You can't stop reading it, It is really entretaining. It is not exactly a novel but stories whose characters era always the four García girls; they can be read independently if you wish. Another good point of the book is that the story begins with what is happening at present and then move backwards up to the moment when the girls are small and live in Dominican Republic. You will enjoy this book.

I was assigned this book for uni work. Most book I’ve been assigned - I love, even if they aren’t my usual genre. However, this was a major thumbs down.