Review Detail

What worked: Powerful, evocative tale told in verse that is heartwrenching at times but still filled with hope. Fifteen-year-old Rima Marin is a 'natural' child. This means she is illegitimate and is shunned by others, including her father and the church. Rima lives with her abuela and mother as squatters on her father's land. While her half-sister lives in luxury and enjoys all the privileges of her birth, Rima struggles in poverty. Her abuela fights for women's rights and also to overthrow the Adultery Law, which permits men to kill unfaithful wives and daughters. What I loved is how this story is told in verse. Readers feel Rima's struggles, fears, and desires to rise above her station in life.

The novel starts in 1923 when Rima is twelve years old. It shows how she and others fight to be recognized. Rima experiences taunts, ridicule, and worse from those around her, blaming her for her birth. Rima draws strength from her stallion Ala and from suffragettes like Ofelia, who support other natural children.

Through all the abuse, Rima doesn't back down. She ends up falling for someone who makes glass. Rima even tries to befriend Violeta, her half-sister. Plus, Rima doesn't give up her dream to have rights like the men in town.

Heartwrenching tale of 1920s Cuba and the women who fought for women's rights.