Review by kurtwombat - The House on Mango Street

kurtwombat 's review for:

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

5.0

emotional funny inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

I have wanted to read this for 40 years. It was published while I was in college and was very buzzed about—I remember seeing it everywhere but it never popped up in my syllabus (and syllabus is a word I haven’t thought of in 40 years—in fact, just saying it out loud vexes me). Natural to build up some expectation in that time—and natural to experience a modest let down—however I was delighted the whole time. The hubbub when it came out was that it opened a door to Hispanic culture. A culture rarely referenced in American Literature, and certainly not from a female perspective. This book helped the pulse of Hispanic life beat on the page for the first time. Not really a novel and not really a collection of short stories, Cisneros uses brief snapshots or impressions to vividly put together a story. Each part is a well-crafted little darling. Adolescent Esperanza narrates her life in working class Chicago with just the right details about her small adventures to create a vivid and embracing tapestry. Small revelations relate to big truths—the neighborhood is the world. Designed so you can drop in anywhere and read randomly but there is a feeling by the end that Esperanza has matured and we see many of the forces that have shaped her.