Dominicana (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781250205933)

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Shortlisted for the 2020 Women's Prize for Fiction

"Through a novel with so much depth, beauty, and grace, we, like Ana, are forever changed." --Jacqueline Woodson, Vanity Fair

"Gorgeous writing, gorgeous story." --Sandra Cisneros

Fifteen-year-old Ana Cancion never dreamed of moving to America, the way the girls she grew up with in the Dominican countryside did. But when Juan Ruiz proposes and promises to take her to New York City, she has to say yes. It doesn't matter that he is twice her age, that there is no love between them. Their marriage is an opportunity for her entire close-knit family to eventually immigrate. So on New Year's Day, 1965, Ana leaves behind everything she knows and becomes Ana Ruiz, a wife confined to a cold six-floor walk-up in Washington Heights. Lonely and miserable, Ana hatches a reckless plan to escape. But at the bus terminal, she is stopped by Cesar, Juan's free-spirited younger brother, who convinces her to stay.

As the Dominican Republic slides into political turmoil, Juan returns to protect his family's assets, leaving Cesar to take care of Ana. Suddenly, Ana is free to take English lessons at a local church, lie on the beach at Coney Island, see a movie at Radio City Music Hall, go dancing with Cesar, and imagine the possibility of a different kind of life in America. When Juan returns, Ana must decide once again between her heart and her duty to her family.

In bright, musical prose that reflects the energy of New York City, Angie Cruz's Dominicana is a vital portrait of the immigrant experience and the timeless coming-of-age story of a young woman finding her voice in the world.

Author: Angie Cruz
ISBN-10: 125020593X
ISBN-13: 9781250205933
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Language: English
Published: 09/03/2019
Pages: 336
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.15lbs
Size: 9.40h x 6.30w x 1.10d
Award: Alex Awards - Winner

Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 07/01/2019
Publishers Weekly 07/08/2019
Kirkus Reviews Fall Preview 08/15/2019 pg. 8
Booklist 09/01/2019 pg. 46
Library Journal 08/30/2019 pg. 1
BookPage 09/01/2019