Becky 7
Found it a slow start with too many exclamation points, especially in the Dear Little Book diary section, which drove her crazy. Story picked up when the 'Come run away with me' letter was burned. Everything was told from the women's point of view. Knew nothing about the Dominican Republic and was surprised that several characters were enamored with Castro. Thought that their dad kowtowed to El Jefe. Liked that Patria both struggled with and took strength from her religion. Thought the prison section went on too long. Discovered that the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women is on November 25 in honor of the sisters.
K'Lynn 7
An intense tale of the four Mirabal sisters, Minerva, Dede', Maria Teresa, and Patricia.
The book starts in 1994 as an interviewer arrives at one of the sister's houses for an exclusive interview. The story is told in flashback and eventually makes a full circle back to 1960. In the Time of the Butterflies is extremely captivating; once I started reading, I didn't want to put the book down. Julia Alvarez does a great job of not only drawing the reader in, but also keeping their interest. Set in the Dominican Republic in a time of intense conflict and war, the Mirabal sisters must decide if and how to fight the oppression they, and the entire country, are facing. The reader watches as the girls develop into strong women. In the beginning, the Mirabal's believe that their beloved president, Rafael Trujillo, is as powerful and great as God himself. However, while away at school, one of the sisters is told a horrific story of the oppression Trujillo is responsible for; the girls quickly realize that he is not a great president, but rather a cruel dictator. After the shocking truth is revealed, they must decide if this fight is worth risking their lives for.
I really connected to the Mirabal sisters, instead of seeming like political rebels, they were humans, with families and lives. Adding a personal connection to the girls makes Trujillo seem even worse because I was strongly invested in the sisters and wants to see no harm come to them. As I kept reading, I became more and more emotionally invested in the livelihood of the sisters and it made me hold on to every word.
So much I could talk about. Trujillo what an awful person starting with volleyball coach and up to offering to sleep with Minerva to get her Dad out of jail (gross!)
Sad ending. I liked how it was given as an epilogue. Dede telling her version rather than all the horrific details.
In the author's note at the end she said that although this story is fictional - a lot of this stuff happened under Trujillo's rule. Made me look up what happened. He was in power for 30 years. A long time and much oppression. I like books that make me want to know more.
I would strongly recommend In the Time of the Butterflies to anyone who enjoys reading a book with intense action but also an emotional connect. While the book is fiction, the themes are very real and truly exemplify the harsh oppression many Dominicans had to face.
Maggie 5
Thought it started with promise but went downhill. Needed to develop each character individually with lots of mundane stuff. Got up, fought with family members, ate. Nothing of real substance. When Minerva slaps El Jefe - this sparked the retribution. They're very famous sisters, but there's nothing here that says why. We don't know. There wasn't enough history in the book. Don't know exactly what they did to warrant all four deaths. Put together bombs? Their husbands weren't even recognized. Trujillo? I had to look him up online to see about him. There was no substance to the story or why he was awful or why the girls were really murdered. There were the bare bones of story but no real information about what happened during this period. Discovered Trujillo did a lot of good infrastructure work. Liked the interactions with prisoners as people.
Pat 4
I wanted to know more about Trujillo. How exactly were they attempting to bring him down? Liked the occasional turn of phrase but frustrated with how story was told. The interviewer was left out almost entirely except for comic relief at her poor Spanish. Who was she? The author? Lost an opportunity to give me a full picture of the history and I was very interested by the first two parts. I should know after reading what happened and why, but I don't. This was the author's failure. Haiti/Dominican Republic share a Caribbean island. That's about all the prior knowledge I had and that was shaky. I liked the literary device of the four sisters voices, but it kept me in the dark. Minerva could have related stories about what was going on about the revolution in the jungle. I got a narrow perspective and the book could have done so much more.
Carolyn 5
Had a lot of questions. Wondered why Dede was so brave, so revered. Why exactly were these three sisters famous, aside from their murder? What would make a mother essentially give up her children to support a revolution? Why? This irritated her. The offered answer is often to make the world better for the kids, but still. Wondered if she would have liked it better had she not known the sisters die at the end. Doesn't think so. Questioned their refusal to leave jail when offered the chance. Really? Why? Freedom comes at a price and they were willing to pay it. What with Minerva's slapping El Jefe', it's shocking he let her live as long as he did. How did Dede really feel about all this? Was she truly resentful with people coming to visit? Book was fine but had some irritating characters.
Lola 9
Saw an interview with Dede (Not sure which one, this link offers a dozen). Thought the story really started when Sinita reveals to Minerva that Trujillo had her family murdered. We learn right from the beginning that he will murder his political opponents. Discovered that Trujillo was really bad; had at least 20,000 people massacred at a border skirmish in 1937 because he didn't want people to escape to Haiti. Champions books that make her want to learn more, and this one did. The sisters were smart and beautiful and led normal lives. They didn't set out to become revolutionaries. It was unusual for women to become involved in this sort of thing back in the day. Wondered about the US support of banana republics. Trujillo really did try to assassinate the President of Venezuela. Liked that the Catholic Church eventually supported the revolution.
Sandy 9 - 8.5
Thought that the suspenseful parts made up for the boring parts. Didn't know until the end that they were real sisters. Sandy's book club homework revealed a podcast that shed more light on the story. The podcast is from Stuff You Missed in History Class or in this case, Stuff That Wasn't in the Book I Just Read. Thought that Minerva was smart but reckless and acted more like a big sister. Figures she wasn't raped because of her family's social stature. Felt bad for her during the three years she was cooped up at home. Liked the line, Papa is rich and mama is an old woman of fifty-one. Liked Patria the least of all the sisters. Her religious, god-fearing belief had her not caring, but she eventually came to understand how the ritual of religion helped her. The ending bumped it up at least 2 points. Why sacrifice yourself? Was reminded that Vietnam War protestors influenced upper echelon policy makers observing from the White House.
Miles 6.75
Knew of the Trujillo regime and its genocide, but not much else. Had never heard of the sisters. Was enthused by the subject matter: regime, history, politics. Enjoyed the first third of the book. Also thought a major turning point was when Sinita reveals Trujillo's true self and intentions to Minerva while at school. Most Latin America countries were set up with one crop that benefitted it, sugar in this case. Trujillo's sugar business was essentially the country's business. He was on a watchlist because of the massacre at the Haitian border. The Organization of American States was watching him. Wondered if it was coincidental that they had a father they didn't really look up to at the same time they didn't have a leader to look up to. Liked the book, but often lost track with its frenetic pace. Wanted a real storyline of what Minerva and her sisters actually did. We got that there were some pamphlets and some buried items on their properties.
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