Book Review: How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water by Angie Cruz

 

About

Cara Romero thought she would work at the factory of little lamps for the rest of her life. But when, in her mid-50s, she loses her job in the Great Recession, she is forced back into the job market for the first time in decades. Set up with a job counselor, Cara instead begins to narrate the story of her life. Over the course of twelve sessions, Cara recounts her tempestuous love affairs, her alternately biting and loving relationships with her neighbor Lulu and her sister Angela, her struggles with debt, gentrification and loss, and, eventually, what really happened between her and her estranged son, Fernando. As Cara confronts her darkest secrets and regrets, we see a woman buffeted by life but still full of fight.

Structurally inventive and emotionally kaleidoscopic, How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water is Angie Cruz’s most ambitious and moving novel yet, and Cara is a heroine for the ages.

My Thoughts

This was our March Book Club Pick @we_read_books_period and it was a very interesting book indeed. Thanks for this recommendation.

How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water is set in Little Dominican Republic, New York at the height of the recession that occurred in the early 2000s. In the story we meet Cara an immigrant from the DR interviewing for a job after loosing her job in a factory where she worked for over 20 years.

Every chapter of the book is a different session of the interview. It is in this job search Cara tells of the life of an immigrant in the USA the highs and the lows. I love stories like these so it really gripped me.

Cara's relationships were very notable in the book. Her sister Angela, her friends Lulu and La Vieja Caridad these women all had struggles and similar demons to deal with. It was Cara's relationship with her son Fernando that took me on an emotional rollercoaster.

Very creative and somewhat poetic, How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water is truly a MUST Read.