Neruda on the Park is a story of Dominican families in an area of NYC that is facing gentrification. If you were a fan of Olga Dies Dreaming, definitely pick this one up. And if Olga Dies Dreaming didn't work for you, I think there's a very strong chance Neruda on the Park will be a better fit. Read on for why.

Neruda on Park has a beautiful emphasis on the characters impacted by gentrification, focusing on characters in different generations without getting caught up in too much of their own personal drama. We have an older character,  Eusebia, who schemes about little ways she can bring down the developers. Meanwhile her daughter, Luz, is a struggling attorney.- struggling with the unrealistic, imbalanced demands of the job and her own desire for connection to family and community. And then Luz goes and falls for one of the white guys working on the development project. 

There are some mildly spicy scenes, but this book still falls solidly into the literary fiction category. I really liked the depth and dimension of all of the characters and the love for Dominican culture was abundant. I can't say a bad word about this book.