Status
Available
Publication
Algonquin Books of Chapel (2010), Edition: 1, 352 pages
Description
Fiction. Literature. HTML:25th Anniversary Edition "A magnificent treasure for all cultures and all time.ā? ā??St. Petersburg Times It is November 25, 1960, and three beautiful sisters have been found near their wrecked Jeep at the bottom of a 150-foot cliff on the north coast of the Dominican Republic. The official state newspaper reports their deaths as accidental. It does not mention that a fourth sister lives. Nor does it explain that the sisters were among the leading opponents of Gen. Rafael LeĆ³nidas Trujilloā??s dictatorship. It doesnā??t have to. Everybody knows of Las Mariposasā??the Butterflies. In this extraordinary novel, the voices of all four sistersā??Minerva, Patria, MarĆa Teresa, and the survivor, DedĆ©ā??speak across the decades to tell their own stories, from secret crushes to gunrunning, and to describe the everyday horrors of life under Trujilloā??s rule. Through the art and magic of Julia Alvarezā??s imagination, the martyred Butterflies live again in this novel of courage and love, and the human costs of political oppression. Julia Alvarezā??s new novel, A… (more)
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User reviews
LibraryThing member Lisa2013
I canāt rate this book with 5 stars because its fiction/non-fiction format drove me crazy. Iād rather have had a non-fiction book about the Mirabal sisters. Given that there is one surviving sister Iād hope that wasnāt an impossible feat. If it really was, however, then Iād rather this
But this book really grabbed me. I ended up having actual nightmares because of and relating to this book. I thought the author did a tremendous job of giving an accurate feeling for what it might feel like to live under a dictatorship regime, and of being public, oppositional figures in such a situation. I enjoyed the writing style much more than Iād expected. Iād like to read other books by this author. Iāve heard her speak a couple times, and Iāve always come away favorably impressed.
I loved the humor in the book. I learned a lot about the time and place. I enjoyed the different voices, although I had to occasionally look back to see who was narrating.
I really enjoyed the characters Maria Teresa, and Minerva, but Patria less so. Maria Teresa struck me as somewhat shallow but very funny, Minerva as passionate and generous, and at times infuriating. Dede felt like a bit of a blur for much of the book; sheās the one who survived and who was available for providing some factual content. Perhaps it was her privacy that needed to be protected.
There werenāt many, but I enjoyed the little drawings in the story; some were like maps, though of small places.
My paperback copy had fascinating extras. The author talks a bit about herself; she was a refuge from Trujilloās regime because of her fatherās activism. I feel her passion coming through in her storytelling. There are discussion questions. And she explains about her choice to write this as a historical fiction novel.
Iād love to know how all the children and grandchildren and other descendents are doing now. I did get from this material how hard it must be to be a survivor of those who were and are martyred and revered. And Iād like to read more about this period in this place. Iām embarrassed that I knew nothing of it, even though I was alive (albeit young) during these atrocities. Iām always astounded and perturbed to read about horrific events that took or are taking place during my lifetime. I always think about what I was doing at the time, and how different my life was, and how ignorant I was.
I read this for my real world book club, and I finished it late, a first for me, but not because I wasnāt enjoying my reading experience.
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historical fiction story have had entirely fictional characters as the main characters. The pertinent real people could have taken on more minor roles in the story, and then I wouldnāt have minded their fictionalization. But this book really grabbed me. I ended up having actual nightmares because of and relating to this book. I thought the author did a tremendous job of giving an accurate feeling for what it might feel like to live under a dictatorship regime, and of being public, oppositional figures in such a situation. I enjoyed the writing style much more than Iād expected. Iād like to read other books by this author. Iāve heard her speak a couple times, and Iāve always come away favorably impressed.
I loved the humor in the book. I learned a lot about the time and place. I enjoyed the different voices, although I had to occasionally look back to see who was narrating.
I really enjoyed the characters Maria Teresa, and Minerva, but Patria less so. Maria Teresa struck me as somewhat shallow but very funny, Minerva as passionate and generous, and at times infuriating. Dede felt like a bit of a blur for much of the book; sheās the one who survived and who was available for providing some factual content. Perhaps it was her privacy that needed to be protected.
There werenāt many, but I enjoyed the little drawings in the story; some were like maps, though of small places.
My paperback copy had fascinating extras. The author talks a bit about herself; she was a refuge from Trujilloās regime because of her fatherās activism. I feel her passion coming through in her storytelling. There are discussion questions. And she explains about her choice to write this as a historical fiction novel.
Iād love to know how all the children and grandchildren and other descendents are doing now. I did get from this material how hard it must be to be a survivor of those who were and are martyred and revered. And Iād like to read more about this period in this place. Iām embarrassed that I knew nothing of it, even though I was alive (albeit young) during these atrocities. Iām always astounded and perturbed to read about horrific events that took or are taking place during my lifetime. I always think about what I was doing at the time, and how different my life was, and how ignorant I was.
I read this for my real world book club, and I finished it late, a first for me, but not because I wasnāt enjoying my reading experience.
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LibraryThing member shanjan
Based on the true story of the Mirabal sisters, In The Time of The Butterflies is the story of four women who were part of the movement to overthrow Trujillo's oppressive and cruel dictatorship of the Dominican Republic in the 1960's.
Alvararez tell the story from the perspectives of all four
I found the story very gripping. We have all heard the stories of major revolutionaries, people who singlemindedly strive for change, but what we don't hear are the stories of the people who participate on a smaller scale to make the revolution possible. I feel that Alvarez sheds light on what it was like for people who cared for the revolution, but cared for other things as well...parents, spouses, children, siblings, and homes.
As well written and compelling as the story was, I felt a lack of connection with the characters. I felt that they made choices that were sometimes unnecessarily reckless, like keeping a diary which names names and antagonizing a political dictator publicly. Perhaps it is my own inability to truly understand what it would be like to live in a country ruled by a monster, but whatever the reason I just didn't relate to the characters in the way I wanted.
All in all it is a book I would recommend reading. It's a fascinating look into a revolution from the eyes of four very different people who were at first bonded by their sisterhood, then bonded by their cause, and ultimately by their murders.
Alvararez tell the story from the perspectives of all four
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sisters. Each woman's life story is woven into the fabric of this novel to reveal what it was like to live, love, and raise children under a politically oppressive dictator.I found the story very gripping. We have all heard the stories of major revolutionaries, people who singlemindedly strive for change, but what we don't hear are the stories of the people who participate on a smaller scale to make the revolution possible. I feel that Alvarez sheds light on what it was like for people who cared for the revolution, but cared for other things as well...parents, spouses, children, siblings, and homes.
As well written and compelling as the story was, I felt a lack of connection with the characters. I felt that they made choices that were sometimes unnecessarily reckless, like keeping a diary which names names and antagonizing a political dictator publicly. Perhaps it is my own inability to truly understand what it would be like to live in a country ruled by a monster, but whatever the reason I just didn't relate to the characters in the way I wanted.
All in all it is a book I would recommend reading. It's a fascinating look into a revolution from the eyes of four very different people who were at first bonded by their sisterhood, then bonded by their cause, and ultimately by their murders.
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LibraryThing member LB121100
The "Butterflies is about four very strong and couragous sisters who lived during the oppressive years of Truijillo in the Dominican Republic. These brave women strive to better the lives of their family and countrymen through guerilla-like strategies. I could not help thinking that we in the US
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have no idea what it is to live under such a horrible regime and how we take our free lifestyles for granted. I thought this book was well-written and gave the reader a feel for the sacrifice of fighting for freedom while trying to hold together a family. I would highly recommend this book. Show Less
LibraryThing member bell7
Once four sisters - Patria, Dede, Minerva, and Mate - lived in the Dominican Republic. They grew up during the rule of Trujillo, a ruthless dictator. Each of them became involved with revolutionaries seeking to end his reign. At the beginning of their story, we meet the living sister, Dede, and
This is an incredible piece of historical fiction that absolutely floored me. As I got towards the end, I didn't want to finish the story - I had grown to care so much about the four women that I didn't want them to be dead. Alvarez, whose family fled to the United States to escape Trujillo's rule when she was ten, has crafted a truly powerful story that will stay with me for a long time.
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soon learn that the other three have been murdered by Trujillo. The narration, however, is made up of all four sisters' points of view, to show their lives, their motivations, and especially their hearts.This is an incredible piece of historical fiction that absolutely floored me. As I got towards the end, I didn't want to finish the story - I had grown to care so much about the four women that I didn't want them to be dead. Alvarez, whose family fled to the United States to escape Trujillo's rule when she was ten, has crafted a truly powerful story that will stay with me for a long time.
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LibraryThing member bookworm12
This historical novel tells the story of the Mirabal sisters. They lived in the Dominican Republic during the rule of the dictator Trujillo. At the beginning of the book we know that 3 of the sisters were killed in 1960 for opposing the dictatorship and that the fourth sister, DedƩ survived. We
The book hit me at a very visceral level. By the end of the novel I felt close to the sisters and even though I knew from the start how it would end, losing them was still painful. Patria, the eldest sister, had a gentle heart and incredible courage. MarĆa Teresa, the youngest, was sweet and devoted. Minerva was incredibly headstrong and brave and it was her story that hit me the hardest. She blazed the path to the revolution for her sisters and I wonder if she ever felt responsible for their safety.
I loved how the book unfolds each sisterās story separately. Each one is interwoven with the others, but they all came to join the revolution in very different ways; for political reasons, for love or because they want to be a protective mother to the revolutionaries. Each one has such a beautiful voice and you grow to feel for each of them separately. You share their frustrations with their sisters, and then when you read the next sisterās section you love that oneās story just as much.
I was surprised that I identified with different sisters at different points in their lives. I had very little in common with some of them, but it was written in such an intimate way that you felt as though you were there, living their passion and frustration and joy right alongside them.
Trujillo regime is not one we hear about very often, but it was horrific. He ruled for 30 years and managed to kill more than 50,000 people during that time. He was an advocate of genetic cleansing and killing black people who make up a huge part of the population in the in Dominican Republic. It reminded me a bit of Hitlerās reign in Germany. People had to say "Viva Trujillo," just like Europeans had to say "Heil Hitler" to show their loyalty and support. It reminded me that if no one stands up against tyrants the world becomes a dark place. Itās easy to say the sisters should have sat back and done nothing, but in the end their deaths brought more worldwide attention to what was happening and who knows how many lives were saved.
BOTTOM LINE: Itās difficult for a book to balance a history lesson and an emotional story arch, especially when itās being told from multiple points of view. I felt like this book did all of those things so well. Itās an important subject matter to be aware of and I loved it.
āHow people romanticized other peopleās terror.ā
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hear the story from each of their points-of-view as they grow up and become the famous women whose assassinations resonated throughout the world. The book hit me at a very visceral level. By the end of the novel I felt close to the sisters and even though I knew from the start how it would end, losing them was still painful. Patria, the eldest sister, had a gentle heart and incredible courage. MarĆa Teresa, the youngest, was sweet and devoted. Minerva was incredibly headstrong and brave and it was her story that hit me the hardest. She blazed the path to the revolution for her sisters and I wonder if she ever felt responsible for their safety.
I loved how the book unfolds each sisterās story separately. Each one is interwoven with the others, but they all came to join the revolution in very different ways; for political reasons, for love or because they want to be a protective mother to the revolutionaries. Each one has such a beautiful voice and you grow to feel for each of them separately. You share their frustrations with their sisters, and then when you read the next sisterās section you love that oneās story just as much.
I was surprised that I identified with different sisters at different points in their lives. I had very little in common with some of them, but it was written in such an intimate way that you felt as though you were there, living their passion and frustration and joy right alongside them.
Trujillo regime is not one we hear about very often, but it was horrific. He ruled for 30 years and managed to kill more than 50,000 people during that time. He was an advocate of genetic cleansing and killing black people who make up a huge part of the population in the in Dominican Republic. It reminded me a bit of Hitlerās reign in Germany. People had to say "Viva Trujillo," just like Europeans had to say "Heil Hitler" to show their loyalty and support. It reminded me that if no one stands up against tyrants the world becomes a dark place. Itās easy to say the sisters should have sat back and done nothing, but in the end their deaths brought more worldwide attention to what was happening and who knows how many lives were saved.
BOTTOM LINE: Itās difficult for a book to balance a history lesson and an emotional story arch, especially when itās being told from multiple points of view. I felt like this book did all of those things so well. Itās an important subject matter to be aware of and I loved it.
āHow people romanticized other peopleās terror.ā
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LibraryThing member cfk
I chose "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez for my October 1930's RTT challenge. Alvarez' family fled the Dominican Republic and the Trujillo regime in 1960. The Butterflies of the title are the three Mirabal sisters whose story begins with the innocence of the young and naive and
In the Time of the Butterflies has the power of historical truth, fueled by the passion of a truly great author. She makes you cringe at the cruelty of Trujillo's secret police and simultaneously want to shake Minerva for her inability to shut up and live to fight another day.
The narrator is Dede',the sole surviving sister, who must raise her sisters' orphaned children. She is the sane one who lacks the courage to join her three sisters and their husbands in the fight for freedom. She will be the one to bear witness to the truth while trying to justify to herself her 'failure' to join them.
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evolves into mythic proportions.In the Time of the Butterflies has the power of historical truth, fueled by the passion of a truly great author. She makes you cringe at the cruelty of Trujillo's secret police and simultaneously want to shake Minerva for her inability to shut up and live to fight another day.
The narrator is Dede',the sole surviving sister, who must raise her sisters' orphaned children. She is the sane one who lacks the courage to join her three sisters and their husbands in the fight for freedom. She will be the one to bear witness to the truth while trying to justify to herself her 'failure' to join them.
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LibraryThing member wordygirl39
Julia Alvarez is one of those authors who hits and misses for me. I was unimpressed with Garcia Girls and Yo, but this book, based on real characters and events, is one of my very favorite pieces of fiction. I've read it three times and each time, like all good literature, it reveals more. Alvarez
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has here told the story of nearly every Latin American country in the 1980s, set against a backdrop of family love, romance, and geography in words that just drip slowly into the reader's consciousness. It's her best. Show Less
LibraryThing member elslibrary
Notes:
The story is a powerful fictionalized account of the Mirabals sisters who drove the underground movement against Dominican Republic dictator Trujillo. Alvarez personalizes this scarred history by telling the story from the perspective of the sisters, the one survivor and the memories of the
Wonderful taste of the culture in the D.R. and the power of these four young women.
The story is a powerful fictionalized account of the Mirabals sisters who drove the underground movement against Dominican Republic dictator Trujillo. Alvarez personalizes this scarred history by telling the story from the perspective of the sisters, the one survivor and the memories of the
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deceased women. Great courage, perseverance and compassion are countered against the brutality of the countryās reality in the 1940-1950ās.Wonderful taste of the culture in the D.R. and the power of these four young women.
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LibraryThing member t1bnotown
I read this in high school, when I was excited by the name- I was already starting to associate with butterflies. I was also very excited to find bits of Spanish and my favorite Spanish word- mariposa. This story is told by the only one who wasn't really a part- the surviving sister, but we see
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intimately into each sister's life. I was enthralled by them, though the ending saddened me even though I think we knew what would happen from the beginning. Show Less
LibraryThing member cinesnail88
I adored this book. I went into it with a certain amount of reservation, as I had read How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents not that long ago and it hadn't stood out for me. This book, however, was amazing. The characters were dead on, Minerva, Patria, Dede, and Mate were like my family. I
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highly reccomend this book, if for nothing else than the powerful history lesson. Show Less
LibraryThing member elwetritsche
The story of a courageous family living under the Trujillo regime in the Dominican Republic. It is brilliantly narrated with the surviving sister Dede remembering the story, telling it to an American journalist.
LibraryThing member FicusFan
I read this book for a RL book group. It is the second book I had read about the Dominican Republic and the Trujillo dictatorship.
This book is much more personal and smaller in scope than the first book The Feast of the Goat. It concentrates on one family, the Mirabals. They have 4 daughters and
These were real people, and they were murdered by the regime. They became heroes and legends, the author tries to tell the story focusing on their humanity and every day lives rather than their status as martyrs. This is a work of fiction, but is done so well, that the story seems real and plausible.
They were active towards the end of the dictatorship, when it was most vulnerable. They caught the fancy of the country and were more dangerous as symbols than perhaps as actual actors. In this book because the focus is almost completely on the family, its hard to tell what their impact on the larger society was. Reading The Feast of the Goat with its wider perspective, and which talks about the Mirabal sisters, makes it clearer why they were killed.
The writing is smooth, and it flows well. The characters are interesting, and people you care about. Very good, although wrenching read.
This book is much more personal and smaller in scope than the first book The Feast of the Goat. It concentrates on one family, the Mirabals. They have 4 daughters and
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through their beliefs, and the acquaintances they make, some of whom they marry, they end up in opposition to the regime. These were real people, and they were murdered by the regime. They became heroes and legends, the author tries to tell the story focusing on their humanity and every day lives rather than their status as martyrs. This is a work of fiction, but is done so well, that the story seems real and plausible.
They were active towards the end of the dictatorship, when it was most vulnerable. They caught the fancy of the country and were more dangerous as symbols than perhaps as actual actors. In this book because the focus is almost completely on the family, its hard to tell what their impact on the larger society was. Reading The Feast of the Goat with its wider perspective, and which talks about the Mirabal sisters, makes it clearer why they were killed.
The writing is smooth, and it flows well. The characters are interesting, and people you care about. Very good, although wrenching read.
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LibraryThing member gillis.sarah
I definitely enjoyed this book. Julia Alvarez did a good job of adapting this amazing true story. The movie version (with Salma Hayek and Marc Anthony) is also good.
LibraryThing member kmaziarz
In 1960, Minerva, Patria, and Maria Teresa Mirabel were brutally murdered because of their involvement in the underground movement to depose Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo. The Mirabel sisters, codenamed āLas Mariposasā (the butterflies), were instrumental in founding the underground
āIn the Time of the Butterfliesā by Julia Alvarez tells the true story of the brave Butterflies through the lens of fiction, highlighting their inspiring bravery in the face of cruel despotism. Written with quiet lyricism, Alvarezās novel becomes a universal story of history, politics, freedom, and human courage.
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movement and inspiring the formation of resistance cells throughout the country. The girls and their husbands and families were symbols of freedom, drawn into the resistance slowly and almost by chance as the cruelty of Trujilloās regime began to personally impact their lives.āIn the Time of the Butterfliesā by Julia Alvarez tells the true story of the brave Butterflies through the lens of fiction, highlighting their inspiring bravery in the face of cruel despotism. Written with quiet lyricism, Alvarezās novel becomes a universal story of history, politics, freedom, and human courage.
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LibraryThing member joojanah
In the Time of the Butterflies is a novel based on the lives of the Mirabal sisters during the dictatorship of Trujillo (30's to 60's), so it basically is one of those obligatory books to read in high school here. I don't really like Julia Ćlvarez's style, so I wasn't too fond of the book. I feel
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it was way too romanticized when compared to the transcendence of the real events. But then again it's a novel, not a biography. Show Less
LibraryThing member Awesomeness1
I found this fictionalized account of the Maribal sisters to be a very good read. Does this mean I enjoyed it completely? Not exactly.
The first two parts of this novel were rather tedious, and I had a hard time getting into them. The last part however, was thrilling as well as informative. Thats
This was a good read, which I do recommend.
Long live the butterflies.
The first two parts of this novel were rather tedious, and I had a hard time getting into them. The last part however, was thrilling as well as informative. Thats
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because its when the girls really got into the movement. This book was touching and inspiring. It was sad to see the high points in the girls' lives, as I knew how it was going to end. This was a good read, which I do recommend.
Long live the butterflies.
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LibraryThing member wamser
Fine, moving account of courage against tyranny. Very human.
LibraryThing member LisaMaria_C
In her Postscript, Alvarez wrote that she wanted the book to "immerse my readers in an epoch in the life of the Dominican Republic." I think she succeeded magnificently. She tells the story of the Trujillo era, when the small island republic was under the heel of one of the more notorious dictators
If you'd have described this book to me, I'd have thought this would not likely be a book I'd like, let alone love. A book centered on a cell of communist revolutionaries involved in bomb-making who name their children after Che Guevera? NO! And this has these little quirks of literary fiction that often seem so artificial to me: shifts in narrative from present to past tense, from first to third person, portions in diary format, jumps in time. And I'm suspicious of works of "creative non-fiction" that blur the distinction between fact and fiction. Well, to take these things in reverse order, this isn't creative non-fiction. As Alvarez wrote in her postscript, the Mirabel sisters of this story are her invention, her creation. This is a novel, not fictionalized non-fiction--that's apparent from the start and I think made the story all the more powerful--she's not afraid to entirely inhabit her characters. Second, she's a master storyteller who kept me riveted from beginning to end--and this despite that she opens the novel with the surviving sister being visited by someone researching the story of the Mirabel sisters--so we know they're doomed from the start. Which lends only poignancy--and strangely suspense--to what follows. I was never jarred by the shifts in time, tense, point-of-view and narrative technique--Alvarez is that good.
And yes, I did care about the sisters. I didn't care for the one novel by Isabel Allende I'd tried, a celebrated Latin American author--Allende's novel seemed such naked Marxist propaganda to me. I never felt that way about In the Time of the Butterflies. Alvarez's novel is not polemic. It's a very personal, intimate story of four sisters and she's great at making them all very different from each other. I never had a problem keeping Patria, Dede, Minerva, and Maria Teresa apart--they all had such different voices, dreams and motivations. It was easy to identify with them and understand their choices. And it probably helped that I felt at home with her characters. My mother is Puerto Rican--it's not so different in culture to the Dominican Republic, and there were little phrases and details throughout where I felt a little shock of recognition. Alvarez evoked her time and place so well I felt I had visited there. It's hard to think of a higher compliment to give a novelist.
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of Latin America. She tells it by giving us a fictionalized account of the Mirabel sisters, known as the "Mariposas" (butterflies) who are national heroes. If you'd have described this book to me, I'd have thought this would not likely be a book I'd like, let alone love. A book centered on a cell of communist revolutionaries involved in bomb-making who name their children after Che Guevera? NO! And this has these little quirks of literary fiction that often seem so artificial to me: shifts in narrative from present to past tense, from first to third person, portions in diary format, jumps in time. And I'm suspicious of works of "creative non-fiction" that blur the distinction between fact and fiction. Well, to take these things in reverse order, this isn't creative non-fiction. As Alvarez wrote in her postscript, the Mirabel sisters of this story are her invention, her creation. This is a novel, not fictionalized non-fiction--that's apparent from the start and I think made the story all the more powerful--she's not afraid to entirely inhabit her characters. Second, she's a master storyteller who kept me riveted from beginning to end--and this despite that she opens the novel with the surviving sister being visited by someone researching the story of the Mirabel sisters--so we know they're doomed from the start. Which lends only poignancy--and strangely suspense--to what follows. I was never jarred by the shifts in time, tense, point-of-view and narrative technique--Alvarez is that good.
And yes, I did care about the sisters. I didn't care for the one novel by Isabel Allende I'd tried, a celebrated Latin American author--Allende's novel seemed such naked Marxist propaganda to me. I never felt that way about In the Time of the Butterflies. Alvarez's novel is not polemic. It's a very personal, intimate story of four sisters and she's great at making them all very different from each other. I never had a problem keeping Patria, Dede, Minerva, and Maria Teresa apart--they all had such different voices, dreams and motivations. It was easy to identify with them and understand their choices. And it probably helped that I felt at home with her characters. My mother is Puerto Rican--it's not so different in culture to the Dominican Republic, and there were little phrases and details throughout where I felt a little shock of recognition. Alvarez evoked her time and place so well I felt I had visited there. It's hard to think of a higher compliment to give a novelist.
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LibraryThing member nosajeel
A beautiful novel about the Mirabal sisters, who were brutally murdered by the waning Trujillo regime in the Dominican Republic. It is told in chapters narrated in the very different voices of the four sisters: DedĢ© who survives, Patria the oldest and most Christian, Minerva the activist
It is also one of the great novels of a semi-totalitarian government and what it means for a group of young women growing up outside the capital. It makes for an interesting pairing with Mario Vargas Llosa's The Feast of the Goat, which covers much of the same period, has some of the same events, but does it all from a different perspective. The difference is that In the Time of the Butterflies is much more subtle. It has the same torture, de facto child rape by Trujillo and other horrors, but all of it is more understated and seen through the eyes of the girls in the story. That all makes the one episode where torture is more directly described that much more powerful.
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revolutionary from a young age, and Maria Teresa the baby of the family whose chapters are her diary.It is also one of the great novels of a semi-totalitarian government and what it means for a group of young women growing up outside the capital. It makes for an interesting pairing with Mario Vargas Llosa's The Feast of the Goat, which covers much of the same period, has some of the same events, but does it all from a different perspective. The difference is that In the Time of the Butterflies is much more subtle. It has the same torture, de facto child rape by Trujillo and other horrors, but all of it is more understated and seen through the eyes of the girls in the story. That all makes the one episode where torture is more directly described that much more powerful.
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LibraryThing member ABookVacation
I was recently required to read this book to see if it would be a good fit in high school curriculum, and honestly I kept putting it off, and putting it off, because it looked boring and depressing. I guess I just learned that I canāt judge a book by its BACK cover and synopsisā¦The book was
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amazing! Once I actually opened the pages and began reading, I became a part of the book, interested in all the sisters and their adventures, mainly against the tyrannical regime of Trujillo in the Dominican. I stayed up late reading as I just couldnāt put it down. Although I knew the ending from reading that back cover of the book, it didnāt lessen my enthusiasm, even though I knew it would end badly. This book is a great read, and explores a time and culture most high school students, and even adults, never hear about, BUT they should! I highly recommend this book, especially if you are interested in history. While this book is fictional, it is based on the true story of the Mirabal sisters who fought for their rights and beliefs against a tyrannical dictatorship, and paid the highest price for what they believed was right. Show Less
LibraryThing member FredB
This book details the lives of the Mirabal sisters, Minerva, Patria, Maria Teresa and Dede, who lived during the time that Trujillo ruled the Dominican Republic. They were opposed to the regime, but, according to the book, reluctantly in the cases of Maria Teresa and Patria. The book depicts what
I listened to the audio version, but did not catch the names of the narrators. The book was told from the first person perspective of each sister in turn, and each one had a different narrator. All the narrators did a fantastic job with their part.
The book could get a bit melodramatic at times, but all in all, it was a very insightful work.
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family life was like under an extreme dictatorship. The first three sisters were eventually killed by Trujillo's henchmen in 1960, just a few months before Turjillo himself was assassinated.I listened to the audio version, but did not catch the names of the narrators. The book was told from the first person perspective of each sister in turn, and each one had a different narrator. All the narrators did a fantastic job with their part.
The book could get a bit melodramatic at times, but all in all, it was a very insightful work.
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LibraryThing member edwin.gleaves
An unforgettable account of the courage of a Dominican family during the dictatorship of Trujillo.
LibraryThing member tloeffler
An historical novel about the Mirabal sisters (Las Mariposas) who were murdered in 1960 in the Dominican Republic for their "subversive" activities against Rafael Trujillo, the dictator from 1930-1961. I am always leery of historical novels: I have enough interest in history to want to be sure of
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my facts, and frequently an historical novel will take liberties. From what I have read after finishing this book (I had to find the real history first), I believe the only reason this is a novel is because it takes a first person account of the years leading up the sisters' deaths. A fascinating, well-researched, touching, sad but ultimately heroic story of a family that stood up for what they believed in. Show Less
LibraryThing member JessicaC35
This story weaves the narrations of four sisters from the Dominican Republic in the 1950's and 1960's. This historical piece of fiction was inspired by the Mirabel sisters who opposed their tyrannical government and paid the ultimate price. This story touches upon issues of culture, politics,
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history, and gender. There is some Spanish infused into the text, which can be challenging. There are also good literary devices used. Show Less
LibraryThing member writestuff
On November 25, 1960 three sisters were found dead at the bottom of a cliff in the Dominican Republic. They were Minerva, Maria Teresa and Patria Maribel- leaders in the revolt against the cruel dictator, General Rafael Leonidas Trujillo. They were more popularly known to the citizens of the
There are no surprises in this novel. Right from the beginning, we know how the story ends. Dede begins the narration in 1994 as she is interviewed by a journalist, and she takes the reader back to the beginning, nearly two decades before the murders. Dede is suffering from survivorās guiltā¦she needs to tell her storyā¦and really, the book is as much about this lone surviving sister as it is about the actual historical events.
Trujilloās crimes against his people are revealed through the voices of Minerva, Maria Teresa and Patria Maribel. Minerva was the most feisty and politically motivated of the three, and it was her voice which I thought Alvarez did a good job capturing. Even still, I found it hard to fully empathize with any of the characters who felt mostly flat to me.
Prior to reading this book, I had no knowledge of what happened in the Dominican Republic in the 1940s through the 1960sā¦and I did learn quite a bit. But, because of the structure of the novel, there was very little tension developed. We know the end result. We know Trujillo is a monster. We wait for Alvarez to amp up the tension, to tell us something new or illuminating. But it does not happen. Despite Alvarezās beautiful writing, and some lovely passages, In the Time of the Butterflies never felt compelling to me.
Readers who wish to learn more about the history of the Domincan Republic may find this historical novel interesting. But for me, it was just a so-so read.
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Dominican Republic as āThe Butterflies.ā Their deaths were covered up by the government as an accident ā but the truth is, they were murdered. One sister, Dede, survived to tell their storyā¦but Julia Alvarez gives the dead women voice in her novel. Narrated in alternating chapters by each woman and beginning in the early 1940s, the book brings the reader up to the day of the murders.There are no surprises in this novel. Right from the beginning, we know how the story ends. Dede begins the narration in 1994 as she is interviewed by a journalist, and she takes the reader back to the beginning, nearly two decades before the murders. Dede is suffering from survivorās guiltā¦she needs to tell her storyā¦and really, the book is as much about this lone surviving sister as it is about the actual historical events.
Trujilloās crimes against his people are revealed through the voices of Minerva, Maria Teresa and Patria Maribel. Minerva was the most feisty and politically motivated of the three, and it was her voice which I thought Alvarez did a good job capturing. Even still, I found it hard to fully empathize with any of the characters who felt mostly flat to me.
Prior to reading this book, I had no knowledge of what happened in the Dominican Republic in the 1940s through the 1960sā¦and I did learn quite a bit. But, because of the structure of the novel, there was very little tension developed. We know the end result. We know Trujillo is a monster. We wait for Alvarez to amp up the tension, to tell us something new or illuminating. But it does not happen. Despite Alvarezās beautiful writing, and some lovely passages, In the Time of the Butterflies never felt compelling to me.
Readers who wish to learn more about the history of the Domincan Republic may find this historical novel interesting. But for me, it was just a so-so read.
Show Less
Subjects
Awards
Dublin Literary Award (Longlist — 1996)
National Book Critics Circle Award (Finalist — Fiction — 1994)
Best Fiction for Young Adults (Selection — 1995)
Notable Books List (1995)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1994
Physical description
352 p.
ISBN
1565129768 / 9781565129764
Other editions
In The Time Of The Butterflies by Julia Alvarez (Paperback)