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How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents  By  cover art

How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents

By: Julia Alvarez
Narrated by: Blanca Camacho, Annie Henk, Annie Kozuch, Noemi de la Puente, Melanie Martinez
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Publisher's summary

Hailed by the Los Angeles Times as "simply wonderful", How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents captures the vivid lives of the Garcia sisters, four privileged and rebellious Dominican girls adapting to their new lives in America. In the 1960s, political tension forces the Garcia family away from Santo Domingo and toward the Bronx. The sisters all hit their strides in America, adapting and thriving despite cultural differences, language barriers, and prejudice. But Mami and Papi are more traditional, and they have far more difficulty adjusting to their new country. Making matters worse, the girls, frequently embarrassed by their parents, find ways to rebel against them.

A touching coming-of-age tale, this enthralling book perfectly illuminates the intergenerational struggles and multicultural clashes so common to the American immigrant family.

©1991 Julia Alvarez (P)2006 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"These interconnected vignettes of family life, resilience, and love are skillfully intertwined and offer young adults a perspective on immigration and families as well as a look at America through Hispanic eyes. This unique coming-of-age tale is a feast of stories that will enchant and captivate readers." ( School Library Journal)

Featured Article: 10 of the Best Hispanic Authors to Listen to Right Now


This list is in no way exhaustive, but it is a great place to discover—or rediscover—exceptional Hispanic writers, many with extensive back catalogs. It’s gratifying to hear these works in the language in which they were written, with gorgeous renditions en español. And while you’ll have plenty of their work to listen to, we also suggest you learn about the lives of each author. Their stories include struggles as immigrants, expatriates, and refugees.

What listeners say about How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

I'm Latina and even I didn't like it

I thought maybe I'd resonate with it but I didnt really. I think that they exaggerate a lot that "they lost their accents" but it seems like it's only in the first chapter. Not the best book but it's a decent book to read in a day. there is also an odd incest underline. at some point this girls dates a distance cousin and he wants unprotected sex and at another one guy cousin trades his toy (a present) for the main character's; in order to give her the toy he has two of his cousin's show him their vaginas. however that put off as "childs innocents", didnt quite get that vibe. made me more uncomfortable than anything. if you want to read go for it, I guess.

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6 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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How the Garcia Girls lost their reader

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I was expecting this book to be entertaining per previous reviews. However, i found myself lost in a myriad of stories and points of views. The book changes from a narrative of at least 5 characters the do not even give perspective into the same "story". They each go off into different times in the life that have no correlation. It's almost as if the book should have been broken down into several short stories of different people at one point or another in NY or the Dominican Republic. While some of these stories were good, overall the book was lacking a seamless transition.

Has How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents turned you off from other books in this genre?

It will not. I'm always excited to find new authors.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narration was not bad.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

dissapointment

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

tedious

I continue listening to this only because I paid for it. If I'd borried it from the library, I'd return it before listening to the end.
It's tedious. It lacks the joy of life inherent in hispanic culture. Each character monotonously probes their inner feelings.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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Reader

Needs to sound more realistic... Have some feelings you sound like a robot. Plus fix the fast forward effect. Thanks

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3 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Difficult to follow

I normally listen to all books start to finish but I just couldn't keep going with this one. It felt disjointed, the stories jumped all over from time and place. It was jumbled and I was left disappointed.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Good book, interesting story

Good narrators but you couldn't really distinguish the change in voices when it came to the different characters.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Intriguing

Loved it! Brought me back to my beloved Quisqueya and my times as an immigrant teen in Nueva York😊

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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how the garcia list their accents

loved the story and narration!
first audible read, cant wait to read the next! thanks

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    5 out of 5 stars
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First time

loved it, narrated very well
This was my first and I enjoyed it.
I will recommend.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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awesome

I really enjoyed the switch of narrators. I loved the book and plan to read it again.

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1 person found this helpful