The Dirty Girls Social Club

A Novel

De: Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez

Narrado por: Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez

A vibrant and absorbing novel of six friends--each an unforgettable Latina in her late twenties--and the complications and triumphs in their lives

As soon as it was written, The Dirty Girls Social Club began turning heads. The Chicago Tribune reported that the book "set off a bidding frenzy" among publishers. The Associated Press reported that "even people running the copy machines at major publishing houses just had to read The Dirty Girls Social Club."

It's no wonder the media is all in a whirl. In this heartfelt and absorbing novel, Valdes-Rodriguez opens up the lives of six upwardly mobile Latina friends in their late 20's. These women, who come from widely varied backgrounds, meet at Boston University and, after graduating, reunite every six months to share their stories. Facing the complications and pressures of everyday lives, the Social Club offers a chance to meet regularly, dish, dine, and help each other over the bumpy course of life and love.

Filled with humor, drama, and the redemptive power of friendship, The Dirty Girls Social Club promises to be one of the most talked-about books of the year.

©2003 Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez; (P)2002 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers, LLC

Reseñas de la Crítica

“The feel of a night out with the girls...charming...undeniably fun.” —Miami Herald

“This lively debut novel...reads like the Hispanic version of Waiting to Exhale.” —New York

“As a guilty pleasure it ranks somewhere between Valrhona chocolate and Jimmy Choo shoes-I simply could not put it down.” —Whitney Otto, author of How to Make an American Quilt

“...the summer's must-have beach book.” —Latina magazine

“...a fresh spin on the best-of-friends novel that's funny, touching, and exhilarating. A winner!” —Jennifer Crusie

“The Latina community has a rich new voice and Valdez-Rodriguez is it.” —Jeffrey Kluger, coauthor of Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13

“Dirty Girls sets out to prove Latina can mean anything-black, white, rich, poor, Spanish-speaking, not Spanish-speaking.” —The Miami Herald

“...Valdes-Rodriguez has written an incredible first novel, told in six distinct voices and points of view.” —Library Journal

“...in the end, it's the complex, finely drawn characters who make the book work.” —Rocky Mountain News

“...a heartfelt, fast-moving, and often funny page-turner.” —Booklist

“This season's most scrumptious book...a summer must.” —Advocate

“Those who liked The Joy Luck Club or The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood will enjoy The Dirty Girls Social Club...It is heartfelt, fast-moving, and often funny.” —Oklahoman

“(an) affecting debut that takes a long, hard, and funny look at life in the U.S. for Latina women...an upscale telenovela with well-drawn, charmingly flawed characters from an author who explodes some myths.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Marked by fast-paced dialogue and a pop-culture sensibility, this engaging novel, each section of which is written from a different woman's perspective, carries an unmistakable message.” —Book

“The writing is strong, fluid, and sometimes laugh-out loud funny.” —Pioneer Press

“Valdes-Rodriguez' compelling characters are enhanced by their racial identities but not at all inaccesible to the non-Hispanic...an enjoyable read.” —San Antonio Express-News

“Valdes-Rodriguez' novel delivers on the promise of its sexy title (with a) diverse group of women that defies stereotypes. The book addresses serious questions-prejudice, the difficulty of winning respect from Latino men-but balances them with enough romances...to satisfy any chick lit fan. This is a fun, irresistible debut.” —Publishers Weekly

If Donald Trump read this book, he'd have a heart attack.

Beautiful expression of Latina culture in America. Would recommend to immigrants and all Americans who don't fully understand the impact of our cultures on each other. It beautifully portrays how women view themselves and others and the complex issues that women and immigrants have to deal with in a patriarchal society that essentially forces immigrants to assimilate or get out. It shows that America is a melting pot of cultural diversity and we can't ignore the prejudice in our country against women and immigrants.

Character building at its best

This wonderful book carefully introduces us to six Latina women who come from very different backgrounds and follow very diverse paths after graduating from Boston University. The way the author slowly interweaves the lives of these women is fascinating and her detailed portrayals of their characters makes them come alive. We can only hope for a sequel!

Entertaining but not spectactular

This book was a light, entertaining listen as long as you don't expect too much. While the character were interesting, the story was somewhat predictable. My biggest disappointment with this audiobook however was not with the story, which was amusing enough. Instead- it was with the author who insited on reading the book herself. She tries to hold on to character voices and accents, but slips back into her natural voice an accent within a few sentences. This became distracting to the point of annoyance at times. Other than that, it was a fun, easy listen.

Loved it!

I have a hard copy read it various times throughout the years, but the audio version allowed the characters to come to life! On to the next Alisa -

love love love it

loved all of it, from start to finish, not even halfway through I knew I was hoping for a sequel, just more, give me more

Great story!

Great story! Where’s the movie? I would watch it in a minute. I hope someone picks this one up.

The Dirty Girls Social Club

This is one of the best audiobooks I have listen to in a long time. I wish I could rate this a 10 star! This book has funny, interesting characters and their situations are real life. I have downloaded her other books.

love

I absolutely love your book! it's my second time reading it and just purchased the hard copy!

Great American stories

This book does a great job of of setting a common American story, that which describes the experiences, differences and similarities between immigrants and natives of (perhaps) the same ethnic group. This group of girlfriends explore the varied hardships, adventures,and joys that comprise the latina experience in the USA. The well written stories are sad, thought provoking and at times hilarious. This would make a great movie and do much to show other Americans how varied Hispanic life and culture can be. The only problem with this book is that it wasn't long enough. I would peek at the timer and lament that this book was almost over.

Go unabridged!

A great book - would have rather had an unabridged edition to hear every last detail!