Review: Of Women and Salt (by Gabriela Garcia)

My Rating: 4 stars

In trying to rate this book, I feel a bit conflicted.  On the one hand, I loved the beautiful, lyrical writing and the way that the author, Gabriela Garcia, was able to capture the emotional nuances of her characters so perfectly (and seemingly effortlessly).  I love family stories that span generations and I felt this one was particularly well done in terms of showing the generational connections between the various women as well as how the decisions each one makes impact each other in a profound way.  I also found it admirable how Garcia was able to cover so much ground in such a short novel (this one clocked in at a little over 200 pages), seamlessly weaving into the narrative timely and important topics such as illegal immigration, deportation, the border crisis, drug addiction, domestic and sexual abuse, etc., alongside political and historical events related  to Cuba and the revolution that occurred there, plus aspects of the Cuban culture and community.  The way that Garcia presented the struggles that her characters (women some from the same family but different generations, others not from the family but connected somehow) go through, I felt like I was getting a first-hand account more powerful than what usually gets presented in the news.  I definitely learned a lot!

 

With all that said, one of the things that didn't work too well for me was the non-linear structure of the story.  I didn't have a problem with each chapter being told from the perspective of different characters, but what made this a frustrating read for me was the jumping back and forth between multiple timelines and settings in a non-chronological way (for example – jumping from 2018 to 1866, then to 2014, then to 1959 then to 2016 then back to 2006, etc.).  I found it really difficult to keep track of the story arcs and ended up having to flip back and forth a lot.  I think if I had been able to finish this book in one sitting, it would've been fine, but the reality is that I'm rarely able to do so with how busy my life often gets.

 

Overall, I feel that this is a strong, assured debut that's also a necessary read, especially for readers who like well-written contemporary fiction that not just reflects current times and issues, but also incorporates historical aspects as well.  Definitely highly recommended, though with the caveat that it's best to read this one all in one sitting if you are able to.  It's also not an easy read by any means due to the heavy (and oftentimes controversial) topics it covers — though triggers abound, it's still very much a worthwhile read.

Received print ARC from publisher (Flatiron Books) via BookBrowse.