Customer Reviews

Cuba 15 (Readers Circle)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Violet has just turned 15, the age when a young Cuban woman traditionally celebrates with a party. But Violet is only half Cuban: she's also half Polish and feels all-American. Her rejection of her Cuban culture changes when she grudgingly accepts the idea for a Cuban celebration of her age - and she begins to learn about the politics and sadness in her background in this revealing and original "coming of age" story.

Myself being half cuban and half american, and not be able to speak a lick of spanish, I feel as if this book was written just for me. I can relate to the fact that Violet feels like she is being forced to have an elaborate party called a qinceañero by will of her abuela. My own abuela happened to "convince" me to have one also just this past month. It was amazing to recieve this book as a present from one of my friends, as it shows all of the problems and stress that can go into planning this coming of age event. Anyone who is interested in Cuban culture or a quinceañero will be delighted by this book.

The Quality of this fist novel was outstanding, for readers of any age. The story itself made you root for the characters, and not just the narrator. This should definately be made into a movie. Looking forward to the next one...

I am a Miami Cuban and of course,we think we are the only "real" Cubans in the United States. I was intrigued about Chicago Cubans and so I added this book to my Cuban book collection. I was pleasantly surprised that we all have the same neurosis, whether we live in Miami or in Chicago (why would a Cuban want to live in such cold weather is beyond me). I highly recommend this book, along with a Cuban fun bilingual picturebook set in Little Havana for younger children titled, Drum, Chavi, Drum!/Toca, Chavi, Toca! I am happy to see so many excellent Cuban books in the market written by Cubans and illustrated by Cubans.

. Cuba 15 is a Pura Belpre honor book as well as being recognized by half a dozen other associations for excellence. It is the story of Violet Paz, a Cuban-Polish American girl living in present-day Chicago. In hilarious first person prose, she educates the reader on the quinceanero, a bat mitzvah-type ceremony for fifteen-year old girls celebrated in Latin American countries. Violet is preparing to "make her quince" in spite of complications presented by her "loco" family, her typical teenage girlfriends, a possible boyfriend, and her nerve-wracking speech team competitions.

An abundance of Spanish words and phrases sprinkle the text with head-scratching regularity (if you don't speak a word of Spanish, which I do not). By the end of the book, however, even I could guess at what was being said, with the help of my Spanish-speaking daughter.

Among the book's many strengths are the well wrought characters, the funny and tender situations, and the mind trip to Chicago (a city I love). Especially convincing are Violet's family. Her relatives seem very real with their lack of fashion sense, volatile emotions, and love of dominoes. An example of an outfit Violet's father is wearing ("He wore one of those canvas coin pouches the volunteers used at the Lincolnville Petunia Festival every year. Blue plaid pants and penny loafers stuck out below the pouch, and above, he'd tucked in his favorite sunshine-yellow long-sleeved shirt with the monkeys on it") paint a grim, embarrassing picture for a fifteen-year old girl.

There are a few four-letter words throughout, but nothing that would be extremely disturbing for most people. Sex is limited to one or two chaste kisses between Violet and her speech team friend, which rang sweet and true to life.

I was sad to see the last page of Cuba 15 - there were actual tears - and I look forward to reading more from Nancy Osa.

A well-written and funny coming-of-age story about fifteen year old Violet Paz, this book really keeps the pages turning! With the help of her two best friends, Violet struggles to change tradition at her quince party, a Cuban celebration for teenage girls turning fifteen. Violet also tries to uncover more information about her Cuban roots, which her father and grandparents are unwilling to talk about. The humerous side of the story is found in Violet's crazy family domino tournaments and get togethers, and her adventures competing on a speech team in original comedy. Sure to be a big hit!

Violet Paz's family does not understand her, which is hard enough when you are 15, but even worse, SHE doesn't understand THEM. Her Cuban father and Polish mother maintain a lively, loud household where dominos rule, extended family members feel free to meddle into everyone's business and large parties are annual events. When Violet's grandmother insists that Violet have a quinceanero (a 15th birthday celebration announcing her arrival to womanhood), Violet does not see how such a tradition fits into her suburban Chicago life. After all, her father refuses to speak of his life in Cuba and Violet barely speaks the Spanish her parents and grandparent use so easily. Plus, Violet and her girlfriends are much more interested in boys and school than in some archaic Cuban rite of passage. But planning the party is just one of Violet's concerns this year; she also has to come up with an original comedy piece for the Speech competition. As Violet's creativity and poise develop, she learns to better appreciate and understand her loving-if loco-family, and her Cuban heritage. Violet and her friends are lively, well-developed female characters, and this book will be of most interest to teenage girls. But it humorously and touchingly reveals the dynamics of a multi-generational and multi-cultural family, making it a good read for everyone.

Violet Paz knows little about her half-Cuban, half-Polish heritage. She simply feels American. So when her Cuban grandmother insists that she have the traditional Quinceanera (the celebration of Violet's 15th birthday), she is reluctant. Will she have to wear an awful ruffled dress and be put on the market for marriage? She finds that quince is instead about tradition, family and self-discovery.

CUBA 15 is a wonderful book filled with humor. Armed with "The Dummies Guide to Quinceanera," Violet learns that she can have a theater theme for her special day, a subject that's very important to her. She does not have to employ all of the old traditions, but she does use enough of them to create a magical mix of cultures with old and new traditions.

While preparing for the big event, Violet studies and writes about her family in an attempt to understand them. Her family's marathon domino games become the subject for a comedy sketch she performs for competition. She secretly participates in a rally for Cuba, inspiring great anger and division in her family, who lived among the political strife there. She also finds her first boyfriend and discovers again how valuable her two best friends are to her.

The actual event is anticlimactic but fun. CUBA 15 is a well-written novel about the journey of growing up.

--- Reviewed by Amy Alessio

Violet Paz is a 14 (soon to be 15) year old girl. Her mother is polish and her father is cuban, what a mix! I won't spoil the plot, but girls who are seeking to find themselves, are a polish/cuban mix or just like to read good books, this is a definate must read for you!

In Cuba (Coo-ba) it's tradicional for a girl turning fifteen to have a quinceñero or a coming out party. But this is not the ideal birthday present for Violet Paz. Half Cuban on her father's side, and half Polish on her mothers but raised in America Violet doesn't really know what she is. One thing's for sure, she is having a quinceñero whether she wants one or not. This is due mainly to her grandmother who speaks a mixture of spanish and English when she's around violet. Violet only really knows what it was like in Cuba when her grandparents throw crazy domino parties while smoking and dancing the conga to loud Latin music. Coming up with the theme of the party, learning how to dance the waltz, trying to glean information abut Cuba from her father, practicing comedy speeches for the speech team, and schoolwork Violet has so much on her plate. But she still finds time for her boyfriend and her two best friends Leda and Janell.
Blending Spanish and English words may be confusing for some people but I thought that the author Nancy Osa did a great job of it. She also wrote in first person, it gave me an insight into violets life and made me feel sad or happy for her at times.
I really liked this book because I learned a lot about a different culture and what a quinceñero is. I thought that Violet was a very believable character and that she fitted in with the story perfectly. El Fin