Julia Alvarez, author of ¡Yo!, lives in Vermont and teaches at Middlebury College. I noticed it instantly when I read the back flap of the book, since Middlebury has a renowned writing program and is the one college that rejected my application so many years ago. Not to judge a book by its cover, but I also immediately noticed the design and layout of this charming little yellow book, its diminutive size and handwritten script-style font on the chapter headings. ¡Yo! is another one of those books that just feels right in my hands, that gives me pleasure to simply turn the pages.
My uncle gave me the book, figuring it would appeal to me based on my interest in Latin culture and the Spanish language, and perhaps because I am writing my own novel that tells, among other stories, the tale of the daughter of two undocumented immigrants to the United States from Mexico. In Julia Alvarez' story, in contrast, Yo's family members are wealthy political refugees from the Dominican Republic residing in the United States.
"Yo" is short for "Yolanda," but also means "I" in Spanish. This protagonist, nicknamed "Yoyo," is a writer for whom the validity of her life's seemingly wayward direction unfolds throughout the course of the book. The story is told through the perspectives of the many people in her life--including her family members in the U.S. and in "the D.R.", her boyfriend, even her stalker. The language is as spirited and enchanting as the stories it relates, which made it as much a pleasure to linger over the words as it was to turn its delightful little pages. Stories within stories is the best way I can describe ¡Yo!. Yolanda García is always dropping out of school, blowing off scholarships, chasing the wrong man, or traveling back and forth from the U.S. to the big estate in the Dominican Republic as she navigates the complexities of her existence in the interface between two cultures--but writing, or struggling with writing, all the while, telling stories that "betray secrets" and "tell dangerous lies," as reviewer Rosellen Brown puts it, throughout the long process of coming into her own as a writer.
It came to a point about three quarters through the book when I wondered where it was going--as if coinciding with Yo's own quandary about her life. Eventually it is through her father's blessing--which relates a difficult story from their trials and tribulations leaving the D.R. for the U.S.--that Yo finally receives the validation and encouragement she needs to tell her stories.
I liked ¡Yo! and I related to it on two levels--that of my love for the rich infusion of Latin and U.S. culture, and that of my own ongoing struggles to trust my instincts and pursue my writing. Alvarez is also author of the award-winning books How the García Girls Lost Their Accents and In the Time of the Butterflies, along with several books of poetry.
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