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The Distant Marvels
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
15 posts | 12 read | 83 to read
Maria Sirena tells stories. She does it for moneyshe was a favorite in the cigar factory where she worked as a lettoraand for love, spinning gossamer tales out of her own past for the benefit of friends, neighbors, and family. But now, like a modern-day Scheherazade, she will be asked to tell one last story so that eight women can keep both hope and themselves alive.Cuba, 1963. Hurricane Flora, one of the deadliest hurricanes in recorded history, is bearing down on the island. Seven women have been forcibly evacuated from their homes and herded into the former governors mansion, where they are watched over by another woman, a young soldier of Castros new Cuba named Ofelia. Outside the storm is raging and the floodwaters are rising. In a single room on the top floor of the governors mansion, Maria Sirena begins to tell the incredible story of her childhood during Cubas Third War of Independence; of her father Augustin, a ferocious rebel; of her mother, Lulu, an astonishing woman who fought, loved, dreamed, and suffered as fiercely as her husband. Stories, however, have a way of taking on a life of their own, and transported by her storys momentum, Maria Sirena will reveal more about herself than she or anyone ever expected.Chantel Acevedos The Distant Marvels is an epic adventure tale, a family saga, a love story, a stunning historical account of armed struggle against oppressors, and a long tender plea for forgiveness. It is, finally, a life-affirming novel about the kind of love that lasts a lifetime and the very art of storytelling itself.
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amsu311
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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Pickpick

My 1st book after 4 months...
Took a very long time to start this book. I shelved it in 2021. Only started it yesterday and finished it in 2 days. It was really that good.

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TLVZ721
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ She was a daughter, a mother, a revolutionary, a storyteller. Maria is evacuated from her home during Hurricane Flora‘s ravage upon Cuba in 1963. While sheltered in the governor‘s mansion, the women share stories to alleviate their fear. Maria tells her life story in heart-breaking detail, not only in an act of contrition but also in hopes that she will not be forgotten. Deeply moving, folk story like prose. Simply fantastic.

Penny_LiteraryHoarders Added! I need a fantastic read. 6y
TLVZ721 @Penny_LiteraryHoarders , might I also suggest Next Year In Havana by Chanel Cleeton? It‘s truly the best book I‘ve read this year and the reason I even found Distant Marvels, as I was looking for more like it! 6y
9 likes1 stack add2 comments
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GatheringBooks
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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#EmojiMadness Day 30: My personal 👨🏻‍🍳 has just made me and our 16 year old daughter olive oil and garlic with homemade garlic chips and pine nuts and garlic shrimps. Paired with a Europa Editions novel from Cuba for the #LitWorld2018GB and perfect for our upcoming storytellers/memoirs/first-person narrative reading theme from April-June.

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WanderingBookaneer
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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@BookishFeminist : My mom is Cuban. Tales of this hurricane—and of Cuban history—abounded in my childhood. Thank you! #SummerSantaGoesPostal

BookishFeminist 😱 I had no idea, but what a lucky coincidence! I love this book so much. Acevedo is an amazing storyteller. I can't wait to see what you think of this. 7y
94 likes1 stack add1 comment
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diovival
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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GatheringBooks
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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First time to join #feistyfeb Day 10 #flowersoncovers - because I can not decide which one I like more, then might as well share two! Plus #europaeditions is lovelovelove.

BkClubCare While scrolling to this post, I instantly recognized and exclaimed EUROPA! 7y
RealLifeReading Europa ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ 7y
RealLifeReading And also thanks for joining in for the first time! 7y
See All 6 Comments
GatheringBooks @BkClubCare been going thru their catalogue today just trying to see which ones would speak to me 7y
GatheringBooks @RealLifeReading i know! i am slowly going through ny collection of europa editions 7y
GatheringBooks @RealLifeReading it is a lot of fun and thanks so much for hosting! 7y
20 likes6 comments
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cathysaid
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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I'm so excited!! Look what came in the mail today - my "A" book for the #LitsyAtoZ Reading Challenge 2017! Putting it on the TBR shelf until January.
#bookmail

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Litsy
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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It's #Recommendsday! What are you recommending? "One of my favorite reads last year! As Cuba's Hurricane Flora strikes in the 60s, women huddle in the attic of a flooded mansion & tell their life stories as they come to terms w/their mortality & pasts. Acevedo's gorgeous, heartrending prose gives an honest, feminist take on Cuban womanhood from its Revolution to today. ?" - @BookishFeminist

shawnmooney Sounds AMAZING! 8y
read_diverse_books I didn't know about #Recommendsday! I will post my own recommendation later. 😃 8y
Yournewfriendsams Awesome! 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 @BookishFeminist 8y
See All 7 Comments
suvata I thought this was an amazing book. 8y
ReadingEnvy Sounds good! 8y
rachaich This sounds like another to add to my pile! 8y
Petitesmerveilles Sounds great! 8y
124 likes45 stack adds7 comments
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Godmotherx5
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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I was caught up in the moment during my first BookCon. The sweet boy at the Europa booth encouraged me to take these books. As I recall, either one or both was/were free. #impulsebuybook #augustphotochallenge @TheSpinecrackersBookClub

brendanmleonard I love these covers! 8y
BookishFeminist The Distant Marvels is one of best things I read last year. 8y
Godmotherx5 @BookishFeminist Wow! Good to know. Thanks for the tip. 8y
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BooksCatsMaine
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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I loved this! Sad and beautiful and evocative of dust and thunderstorms.

MrBook Nice picture!! 8y
BooksCatsMaine Thanks MrBook! Love the username :) 8y
BookishFeminist I loved this too! One of the best books I read last year. 8y
MrBook Thanks 😎👍🏻! I take great pride in it. More than one friend has applied the moniker to me, so it was an easy choice for my handle 😊. 8y
6 likes1 stack add4 comments
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BooksCatsMaine
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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Perfect day to start a new book...
(And a Campari always helps too...)

BookishFeminist I love this book so much! Enjoy. 😊 8y
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BookishFeminist
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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#TBT During Cuba's Hurricane Flora in the 60s, women huddle in the attic of a flooded building & tell their life stories as they come to terms w/their mortality & pasts. In gorgeous prose, Acevedo gives a heartrending, honest & feminist take on Cuban womanhood from its Revolution to today. 🌺 #ReadWomen

AmyStewart Wow! 8y
BookishFeminist @AmyStewart It is incredible! I still think about it a lot over a year later. 8y
RebeccaRenner YES I love her! She's my fiction writing teacher! 8y
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AmyStewart I was just in Cuba last year. Must read this 8y
BookishFeminist @AmyStewart When you do I'm looking forward to seeing your thoughts- jealous of your Cuba trip! 8y
BookishFeminist @BeckyRenner No way! That's amazing! Incredibly jealous but that is super cool. Do you know if she has any other books out?? I would love to read more. 8y
RebeccaRenner She has several books, but this is the only one I've read so far. I also know she's working on another one that sounds really interesting, but I probably can't talk about it. :P I just sat with her on a three hour car ride through Mexico, so I know too much. 8y
RealLifeReading Sounds good 8y
BookishFeminist @BeckyRenner That sounds lovely. I'll have to track down her other stuff. Let me know when you're allowed to tell me more about her new book :P 8y
BookishFeminist @RealLifeReading It's phenomenal! 8y
samritch You can never have too many Europa's in your possession! 8y
BookishFeminist @samritch Agreed! I love most things Europa puts out. I'm always instantly intrigued! 8y
bookloversnevergotobedalone Discussed this with my book club. I loved it. 8y
BookishFeminist @bookloversnevergotobedalone This would be a wonderful book club book. I thought it was so powerful & lots of stuff to unpack. 8y
71 likes17 stack adds14 comments
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lissyreads
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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Hearing Chantel read from The Distant Marvels was such a treat. I'm still in awe about getting to work with her.

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RebeccaRenner
The Distant Marvels | Chantel Acevedo
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The best part of this book was how real the history felt.

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