Ever since reading In the Time of the Butterflies, I have been convinced that Julia Alvarez was a gifted writer. This collection of her essays was purchased for our library to add to our creative writing teacher's curricular tools. I couldn't resist being the first to sample same. Alvarez has a way of talking to the reader that makes her essays ever so readable. I especially love the personal illuminations of her family in the Dominican Republic and in the states. What a fascinating immigrant story! One of my favorite essays is "Chasing the Butterfies" which put chills on me as I recalled the power in her novel that made me into her fan. I am not surprised that she is connected to the Bread Loaf writers. What quality comes from that group! I was a late-in-life discoverer of writers outside of the CANON, but I never again shall believe that only the canon has quality. The multicultural writers that I have discovered since 1992 as a member of the NEH sponsored Common Ground at the University of Houston, have enriched my life and the lives of my students. Any would be writer should read these Alvarez revelations. Being able to come and go from the entries makes the work so very user friendly. Brava, Julia!

In Something to Declare Julia Alvarez give us rich insights into the process of being a writer and living the full but difficult life of a bi-cultural citizen. Her book helped me a lot to understand my dual citizenship, but also it helped me to deal with the voices that fill my mind in at least two languages. A must for anyone who enjoys ethnic literature, or emmigrant fiction.

Julia Alvarez lets readers into her thoughts and imagination with a wonderfully readable collection of essays in "Something to Declare".

In recent years, literary authors and publishing houses have published dozens of fictionalized accounts of historical figures, with Joyce Carol Oates' BLONDE (Marilyn Monroe) and Russell Banks' CLOUDSPLITTER (John Brown) being prime examples of this genre. Because I'm tiring of such fiction, I never would have bought IN THE NAME OF SALOME if I had known Alvarez had joined this literary trend - and I would have missed out on a fabulous book as a result. Yes, this may not be Alvarez's best work, but the literary standards and emotional impact are still higher than most novels published today. This deeply imaginative portrait of the Dominican poet Salome Urena and her daughter Camila captures the people behind the revolutions in the Dominican Republic and Cuba without idealizing them, without relegating them to mouths spouting political dogma. As Salome says to her young husband when he chides her for writing a non-revolutionary poem, "I am a woman as well as a poet." This is exactly what Alvarez accomplishes: an adept melding of the public and private sides of her characters to give her book real heart.

This novel spans over a hundred years, from the 1850's (the beginning of Salome's story) to the 1970's (the end of Camila's story.) Because the two stories are interspersed and are not told chronologically, the time and place can sometimes be confusing despite the chapter headings meant to give the reader his bearings. Don't let this frustrate you; the story is well worth this flaw. My advice is just to give yourself up to Alvarez's skill and let her take you where she wants.

I think most of Alvarez's fans will not be disappointed, and I believe she will gain a few more with this novel, perhaps enticing these newcomers to read her earlier work.

JULIA ALVAREZ HAS DONE IT AGAIN! TRANSFORMING THE LIVES OF GREAT DOMINICAN HISTORICAL AND LITERARY ICONS INTO A STORY THAT ALL CAN RELATE TO. THIS NOVEL UNCOVERS THE LIFE OF SALOME URENA THE GREAT DOMINICAN POETESS, AND THE LIFE OF HER DAUGHTER CAMILA. THE NOVEL IS WRIITEN FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF BOTH WOMEN, ALTERNATING THROUGHOUT THE NOVEL. THIS FORMAT IS ESSENTIAL, IT GIVES THE CHARACTERS A CHANCE TO BE THROUGHLY DEVELOPED AND ALLOWS THE READER TO SHARE AND BECOME IMMERSED IN THEIR LIVES.

A PASSIONATE NOVEL THAT WILL LINGER IN THE MEMORY LONG AFTER THE BOOK HAS BEEN PUT DOWN.

Based on the real lives of the Dominican poet Salomé Urena and her daughter Camila, Julia Alvarez's newest novel explores the public and the largely imagined inner lives of two revolutionaries, one of whom fought with words and the other who wished she could have. Both characters are extraordinarily imagined, with the line between fact and fiction so expertly smudged it is almost impossible to guess where each leaves off. Alvarez chooses to switch between the points-of-view of the two women, who never knew each other well due to Salome's untimely death, making for some confusing transitions despite the chapter headings designed to guide the reader. Don't get frustrated because this flaw is minor compared to the rewards you'll get from reading this. My advice is to allow Alvarez's skill to take you where she wants. You won't regret it.

This may not be Alvarez's best book, but it is an admirable one all the same. I suspect most fans will not be disappointed, and she will gain some new readers along the way.

How Tia Lola Came to Stay is a delightful story about a 10-year old boy going through major changes in his life and how he learns to deal with these changes. Miguel has moved to a small town in Vermont from New York City because his parents are getting a divorce. His mother has a new job as a counselor at a college, and Miguel and his little sister, Juanita, have to start a new life with her. It is hard for Miguel to be the only Latino in his class and he misses his father. He tries not to say too much about his feelings, as he doesn't want to upset his mother. Even so, he is not thrilled when she tells him that her aunt, Tia Lola, is coming from the Dominican Republic to help take care of them while they get settled. She doesn't speak English and Miguel and Juanita only speak a little Spanish. Tia Lola arrives like a burst of sunshine on a cold, gray Vermont day. She brings good food, love, laughter, and a spice for life. She is not worried about fitting in and everyone loves her, though Miguel cannot help but be embarrassed by her at first. Through her colorful approach to life she helps Miguel and his family figure out how to cope with all the changes in their lives and comes up with a plan to help Miguel make friends.
How Tia Lola Came to Stay touches on subjects that are relevant to children today. Divorce, moving, family dynamics, learning to fit in are topics with which many children have to deal. Julia Alvarez does a nice job of sprinkling the dialogue with Spanish words and finding authentic reasons to translate them in the text. Tia Lola's joyful way of living life comes through in the situations and language Alvarez uses. Miguel's maturation through the book is gradual and believable as he works through his feelings about what has happened to his family. All in all this book is a good read.

This book will inspire the hearts of children everywhere, it is relevant to many children today. Its focus is around a family that has just been split apart by divorce. Miguel and Junita have to suffer from this divorce by moving away from their father in New York to live with their mother in Vermont. Miguel and Juanita do not want their Aunt Lola to come. Little do these children know, that when their Aunt Lola from the Dominican Republic comes to visit they grow to like her and do not want her to leave. Aunt Lola speaks only Spanish, Miguel and Junita speak some Spanish (enough to get by). Not only do these children have to learn to fit in in a new school, but also learn to make their Aunt feel welcome. Miguel thinks that Aunt Lola has special powers that allowed him to be on the baseball team. A child's imagination can can run wild in this novel. This book if filled with Spanish, which can help a young reader learn a different language. A trip to the Dominican Republic inspires the children to want to learn more about Aunt Lola's culture. They were surprised at how much they looked like their relatives, even though they are Americans. The story is filled with a lot of twists, especially at the end. I recommend this book to any child who is interested in different cultures.

I just read and enjoyed this book in one sitting and had to sign on to comment. At first, I was a little unsure if I would like it (the present tense third person was a surprise), but after only a paragraph or so, I was hooked. I won't try to sum up the story (you can read the description for yourself) but only say that Alvarez was spot-on in her descriptions of how it feels to be the child of divorce, how it feels to be Latino, etc. I would also recommend this book to middle-grade boys who like baseball and those readers who don't like an extreme conflict (there are problems for the main character here, but Tia Lola takes care of many of them, and the effect is comforting).

I think it's unfortunate that a reviewer gave this one star on the basis that the book did not live up to the author's other adult works. I read many many children's books (and try to write them myself) and giving this book one star is simply unfair. I have not read Alvarez' other works (I probably will go seek them out after this!), but if they're THAT much better than this book, then they must be outstanding!

Overall, a sweet and charming read that made me wish I had a Tia Lola too!

This book addresses topics like war and the generational gap facing women through the context of housekeeping. It tackles the opposition of moments, not through anger or frustration but through the comedy of life. Alvarez hints to the excess of love in this world being focused on material possessions because of the before mentioned generational gap and the cynical views held by the previous generation. She expresses her belief in the allegiance to duty as being honorable. This book is a celebration of the "single minded labors/of the single women artist." And finally this collection of poems calls into question the hierarchy of values and the idea that as human beings, men or women, "What comes first?" Overall, these poems are a direct link to the struggles and happiness women face in society today that are not just brought on by the patriarchal, but the mothers and grandmothers that preceded them.

I bought this book as a birthday present for a friend of mine. She's majoring in spanish and intends to teach english as a 2nd language to spanish students.
She enjoyed the book a lot. Said she had never seen a book like it, with both languages side by side and also a kind of cook book. She took it to some of her spanish teachers and others in class and they all liked it.
I thought it was a really neat idea, very unique. It would be good for someone interested in both languages, or good salsa!

How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents was an extremely enjoyable read. While being quite entertaining, it also gave an excellent insight to traditional life in the Dominican Republic. The novel thoroughly delves into the controversial matter of being raised an extremely patriarchal society, adjusting to a more liberal one later in life, and difficulties one encounters when returning to his or her homeland. The reverse chronology the author used was primarily a bit hard to grasp, but became more natural as it progressed. When one usually reads a novel, he or she is always waiting to turn to the next page to see what will happen next, but here, the urge comes from the stylistic writing and intriguing character development. Overall, this novel is a fascinating analysis of what modern-day immigrants experience upon transplanting themselves to a new place and culture. Julia Alvarez has done a wonderful job with this educational yet delightfully fun piece of literature.

The book How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents was a great book about the American expierence. These 4 girls left their homeland of the Dominican Republic and went to America. They disobeyed thier old-world discipline, and went to America, and found who they truly were. America changed the four girls, into people that their parents never thought they would be. This novel compares to the "Joy Luck Club" there are many similiarities. This novel shows how *Americainizing* girls can be good and bad. There are humorous stories and some very seroius stories. This is a great book and everyone should read this book, to get a feel for what it is really like to come to America from a foreign country, and the expierences, and issues people have to deal with....Great Book:-)

I enjoyed reading this book. I liked the challenge it gave me. This was a book from a different culture and it was also written in a different way. The book did not follow in chronological order, instead it went backwards. This made the book confusing and interesting. The book was full of symbolism. I usually do not read into the symbolism but in this book it was clear to me that somthing stood for something else. I was not always sure what it would stand for, but I knew it was something. I also liked the way that the book was broken up. There was a chapter for each girl and it helped develop thier character. This book took place in the Domenicain Republic and the United States. This helped me get a sense of another country and their culture, but I did not get confused because they were also talking about the United States. I could relate with the character Yolanda. She wanted to stay true to her roots but also become an American she was divided in who she wanted to be. I am also that way with my heritage. I enjoyed reading about her. I really enjoyed this book because it was from a woman's point of view, it gave me a chance to see a different culture, and it did it all in a way that I did not get confused and I enjoyed it.

Anita's like most girls her age, except she lives in the Dominican Republic under a bloody dictatorship. Not knowing anything about this time in history, I was excited to read this book. Anita learns her family in smack dab in the middle of the uprisings against El Jefe. However, I found the fact that things such as exclamation points being overused (there was like one every page!" sort of annoying. However, the author provided some very interesting and intense moments as well. I would have to stay it was believable for the most part. I only wish Anita had been a bit older, for a think it would have been more interesting to have a 15 or 16 year old telling it to us.

As a 6th grade teacher, I like to keep on top of recent novels published for young adults. I read this and found it to be one of the best novels to be written recently for teens. I have also recommended it to many of my students who in turn have read it and have thoroughly enjoyed it as well.
Full of suspense (what will become of Anita and her new love for Oscar? what will become of the family? what will happen to the country?), Before We Were Free keeps students' interest yet does not steer away from good writing. Beautiful writing, suspenseful action, and characters worth caring about make this a book every young adult should read.

Before We Were Free precisely tells us how it is like to grow up underthe dictatorship. It is so scary that they have to live surrounded by the secret police. Yet, the depiction of Anita, the protagonist, is so real that one can feel compassion sympathy toward her. The ending is somewhat sad, but I rather feel the power of human beings to survive.

I struggled to finish this book simply because of the way the story of the two protagonists was written. Salome (the mother) and Camila (the daughter) never met each other because Salome died when Camila was very young.

Salome was a famous poet in the Dominican Republic and lived during a difficult historical period in her country. On the other hand we see the life of Camila, a retired schoolteacher who is about to leave the US to live in Cuba and play a role in the Cuban Revolution.

Salome is by far the more interesting character and her poetry was pivotal in the Dominican revolutionary period. Out from her writings the reader learns more about the DR during the 16th century. Camila seems more disoriented, unsure of herself and did not live the life that she wanted to and being more active in the Cuban political sphere did not change her life at all.

The book is interesting from the point of view that it relates the story of two people's life, mother and daughter in two distinct time frames but it would have been more interesting if I had known more about Dominican political history because the book is heavily oriented around their history. I think this one of those books that will either captivate you or not interest you at all but I say it the reader's choice if you are curious and if you like Julia Alvarez as a writer.