When I Was Puerto Rican

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Summary: A very real expression of the cultural experience of a P.R.
Review: Esmeralda Santiago expressed the thoughts and emotions of a Puerto Rican child. She revived the scents, sights and emotions of living on that beautiful island provided to some of us. I found myself laughing and crying as memories of the moments in which we learned the hidden meaning in certain things are parents said and did. I was tickled and overjoyed when I realized that Esmeralda was able to put into words so much joy, sadness and experience.

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Summary: If i could give it 0 stars I would
Review: This book was horrible! Santiago exoticizes Puerto Rican culture. The proper way to eat a guayaba? Gimme a break! And the ending of the book is pathetic: she gets into Harvard and therefore is successful. Nothing else needs to be said. Oh please. As a Puerto Rican who went to an Ivy League school there is more to life that getting a diploma from a prestigious school and it certainly is no guarantee of success. Santiago is clearly capitalizing on the current thirst for 'ethnic' books in this country (just look at the title). For EXCELLENT writing and a more realistic view of life on the island I recommend Ana Lydia Vega, Magali Garcia Ramis, Rosario Ferre, Edgardo Rodriguez-Julia, Luis Rafael Sanchez.

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Summary: Esmeralda Santiago is very talented
Review: Esmeralda Santiago is a very talented woman. This book shows so much about her life and about first coming to America. Each page is something new. I liked this book a lot and because it was so good, I also read "America's Dream" and "Almost A Woman"

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Summary: PROUD TO BE PUERTO RICAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: Great book. It makes me proud to be of puerto rican descent. It is funny, serious, heart warming and any other adjective that I can't think of at this moment. I enjoyed this novel so much that I have passed it on to numerous friends at my job and relatives. It is getting worn out but its worth it just to hear peoples reactions to it. A truly well written account of one womans struggle to make it. I cant wait to read it again. This novel truly deserves to be made into a motion picture. Hey steven spielberg, are you listening??

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Summary: I SWEAR, THAT ALL HAPPENED TO ME IN HUMACAO
Review: I read this book with my mouth hanging open..... Did we have parallel lives??? I laughed, I cried, if I were to ever write my memoirs, only the names would change.

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Summary: Simply One of the BEST books I ever read from start to end
Review: I am not a reader by any means but I had to read this book for a class at school. What a "funny" name for a book I said to myself, I bet this book is going to be as boring as the other ones I was forced to read. Boy was I wrong ! As a fellow person from the Caribbean, Esmeralda is the best at storytelling. At times I felt I was there in Puerto Rico. She is vivid and tells a story with such innocence it reminded in so many different ways of my own life growing up in Trinidad. I could relate to her own life and I believe that this is a connection that only fellow Caribbeaner's could identify with. But she is so good at what she writes, all who read her book would understand her pain and happiness as an innocent 'jibara' growing up in P.R. I am convinced that this is not the last Esmeralda Santiago book that I will ever read. I give it 10 stars.

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Summary: This book tells the true trip of one immigrant
Review: This book tells the truth about one immigrant, Esmeralda Santiago, and how she overcome her trip to NYC. In one view she was scared and sad to leave her native Puerto Rico. In another view, she was excited and enjoyed the new and better life that she has in New York City. Most stories of immigrants coming to America are either fiction, or do not tell much abou the time spent in the native country, they usually begin when the family is on the move to America.

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Summary: a wonderful place to be for awhile . . .
Review: wandering through her mind. she captures a place, a feeling, a silence or a torture and articulates excellently so you feel you are there, too. i await more from her!

Rating:
Summary: engrossing and evocative
Review: I just finished reading When I Was Puerto Rican and was sorry to see it end. Although I grew up in the Dominican Republic, the daughter of an American father and a Dominican mother, Ms. Santiago's experiences have a familiar flavor: setting out carefully manicured bundles of grass for the camels of The Three Kings on Christmas, eating rice and beans and "sancocho," being admonished not to discuss "la politica" in the era of Trujillo. The author's sympathetic but realistic character portrayals remind me of the Dona Lilas and Fedoras and Tinas of my childhood. Later on I lived in San Juan, so the book is doubly evocative for me. I look forward to reading Ms. Santiago's other works!

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Summary: I wish I were Latina!
Review: I read this book over a year ago but its images are still with me. I admire the strength of the author and admire the sense of identity and pride of the protagonist. If you are in love with the culturo latino and its colorful flavor, this one's a must!