Dnf at 22%

I couldn't get into this, I think I have outgrown this story being 26. Also the main character and I don't have much common ground with what little I know about her. The characters aren't memorable and I found the story to be a bit boring. ( )

Dnf at 22%

I couldn't get into this, I think I have outgrown this story being 26. Also the main character and I don't have much common ground with what little I know about her. The characters aren't memorable and I found the story to be a bit boring. ( )

This is about a girl who is about to turn 15 years old. Her Cuban grandmother was expressing to her that traditionally she would be celebrating with a Quincenera because this is the age that a girl enters womanhood. She is confused on how she wants to celebrate her birthday. The reasoning behind her dilemma is that she's half Cuban and half Polish but more importantly she feels 100% American. So this young girl has a major decision to make about her 15th birthday.

When I have read this book, it made me start thinking about when I turned 15 and when I had gone through the whole Qunicenera tradition because of my Hispanic Heritage. And also because my entire family line on my father's side had entered womanhood by having a Quincenera.

I wouldn't use this book in my future classroom or lesson plans because it's a little way advanced for the age I work with. ( )

This is a humorous book centered around a girl living in Chicago who is turning 15. Her grandmother is determined she will have a traditional Hispanic quince with a court and frilly dress.The plots become entwined with Violet's involvement in a public speaking team at school, her impending quince and her fascination with her father's home of Cuba. She is even more intrigued by Cuba when her father refuses to talk about his heritage. This curiousity gets Violet in trouble near the end of the book and as the reader you feel her pain as she is severely reprimanded by her family. I felt it all was so unfair to Violet yet I did not come from her parent's background. Amid this seriousness of that subject is the haliriaty of her crazy family who love to play dominoes and party. There is the element of love as Violet experiences her first boyfriend Clarence. Her brother Mark adds just the right amount of sibling problem as he gets on her nerves.
The book reads slowly through its almost 300 pages but proves to be a fun one to read. ( )

“What can be funny about having to stand up in front of everyone you know, in a ruffly-dress the color of Pepto-Bismol, and proclaim your womanhood? Nothing… Nothing funny at all. At least that’s what I thought in September.” In Cuba 15 by Nancy Osa, Violet Paz is a 15 year old girl who is struggling to find herself, all while trying to plan her Quinceñero, the Cuban celebration to “womanhood” a girl experiences at 15 years of age. Her father is of Cuban culture and her mother is Polish, but Violet is clearly less than thrilled to explore her culture or celebrate the traditional party. However, when beginning the planning for her Quinceñero, Violet decides to educate herself about her Cuban culture and learn more about her family. She becomes interested and grows to love her family and heritage.

Throughout the course of the story, Violet is dealing with two major conflicts- figuring out who she truly is and which culture she should identify with. Since Violet is of teenage years, she grows and learns throughout the story about not only her culture and family, but herself as well. She comes to the conclusion that she doesn’t have to pick one identity to go by, and is proud of her multi-cultural family roots. This realistic fiction book has multiple themes, including Cuban Americans, Quinceñeros, Identity, and Multi-cultural immigrant families.

The theme of this book connects to the theme of the American Dream because Violet is dealing with internal and external conflicts (such as who she truly is, and how she should go about learning her cultures) the same way someone hoping to reach the American Dream does. Violet learns of identity and matures throughout the story the same way one trying to the reach the American Dream would. Both deal with struggles to reach their goals and learn important life lessons along the way, such as Violet accepting and embracing the fact that she comes from a multi-cultural family.

The story itself is very humorous from the moment you open the book, which made it extremely enjoyable. It follows the exciting events and happenings of a teenager from a biracial family, but is still an easy read that is very entertaining. The entire story is very believable, from the rate that Violet is maturing to the realistic accompanying characters, such as her family, best friends, and new boyfriend. The only slight problem
with this book is that it is a little slow at times, but other than that it was a very amusing read. Even readers who aren’t in a multi-cultural family will enjoy this book. Read this story to experience a life-changing adventure with Violet as she “takes a deep breath, opens her mouth, and lets the truth come out.” -B.M.