Xochitl Gonzalez

It's 2017, and Olga and her brother, Pedro “Prieto” Acevedo, are boldfaced names in their hometown of New York. Prieto is a popular congressman representing their gentrifying Latinx neighborhood in Brooklyn, while Olga is the tony wedding planner for Manhattan’s power brokers.

Despite their alluring public lives, behind closed doors things are far less rosy. Sure, Olga can orchestrate the love stories of the 1 percent but she can’t seem to find her own. . . until she meets Matteo, who forces her to confront the effects of long-held family secrets.

Olga and Prieto’s mother, Blanca, a Young Lord turned radical, abandoned her children to advance a militant political cause, leaving them to be raised by their grandmother. Now, with the winds of hurricane season, Blanca has come barreling back into their lives.

Set against the backdrop of New York City in the months surrounding the most devastating hurricane in Puerto Rico’s history, Xochitl Gonzalez’s Olga Dies Dreaming is a story that examines political corruption, familial strife, and the very notion of the American dream―all while asking what it really means to weather a storm.

Olga Dies Dreaming

This was an amazing novel—so sad that Hulu didn’t pick the pilot with Aubrey Plaza as Olga.

Ani Velasquez

Didn’t love it, didn’t hate it. I appreciate the importance of uncovering some dark truths about the treatment of Puerto Rico; but the general storyline was boring. The first 85% of the book is so slow, and not even for solid character development reasons. I wish more time was spent telling Matteo & Mabel’s stories - as they were highly influential in the last part of the book, but I felt like I still barely knew them. 

Elyse 

Amelia C 

Lots of reviews seemed ambivalent about this book. I am firmly on the 5 star side. This was a fantastic debut novel. The characters were multi faceted and robust, and I loved to hate some of them. Olga’s struggles were relatable and poignant, and I found myself rooting for her despite her sometimes ridiculous self destructive behavior. And I especially appreciated the history lesson. Learning about Puerto Rico and the good ol colonial masters 🤬 was a plus!

I'm a sucker for a novel covering government, family history, and when a character can forge their own path. Olga Dies Dreaming has all of that and it was a fun read until the final quarter. I absolutely loved how Gonzalez is able to set a sense of place while travelling through time to show who these characters and their families are. But it was a lackluster ending unfortunately.

Ali Angco

Olga and Prieto are siblings to two radical parents. One has passed due to drug usage and complications from AIDS. The other haunts the family as a spectre, as she has abandoned her children since their high school days in the pursuit of a free Puerto Rico. Blanca is perhaps the worst mother I've seen on the written page, as even though she's physically gone for the majority of the book, the pages are interspersed with her letters to her children in which she is constantly trying to tear them down, tear them apart, and manipulate them for the sake of her revolutionary and selfish mission. 

The story follows the siblings, both hollowed out by the absence of their mother,  both leading successful(ish) lives in order to prove their worth while sacrificing their happiness. Prieto is a closeted gay politican who struggles with his sexuality. Olga is a career woman wedding planner who eventually comes to realize the love she's denied herself due to family trauma. 

The book weaves a complicated story about a family, local politics, falling in love, moving past a deeply fucked up and abusive parent, and Puetro Rican independence. And somehow it works beautifully. 

Krys C

Olga and Prieto are siblings to two radical parents. One has passed due to drug usage and complications from AIDS. The other haunts the family as a spectre, as she has abandoned her children since their high school days in the pursuit of a free Puerto Rico. Blanca is perhaps the worst mother I've seen on the written page, as even though she's physically gone for the majority of the book, the pages are interspersed with her letters to her children in which she is constantly trying to tear them down, tear them apart, and manipulate them for the sake of her revolutionary and selfish mission. 

The story follows the siblings, both hollowed out by the absence of their mother,  both leading successful(ish) lives in order to prove their worth while sacrificing their happiness. Prieto is a closeted gay politican who struggles with his sexuality. Olga is a career woman wedding planner who eventually comes to realize the love she's denied herself due to family trauma. 

The book weaves a complicated story about a family, local politics, falling in love, moving past a deeply fucked up and abusive parent, and Puetro Rican independence. And somehow it works beautifully. 

I think the book did a fantastic job at bringing light and awareness to Puerto Rico's abuse under American rule, and that is why I gave it three stars. I really enjoyed the historical tidbits and I think the story got a lot of grounding from that. I wish the characters got more development, at times things seemed way too black and white, and the "bad guys" were caricatures of evil and things just too convenient and almost comical at times. I think it's a good beach read, but the story line felt too whimsical for the very serious message it was trying to convey. 

 The pacing of the story really dragged on in the beginning, but the characters were so undeveloped. Rich and Matteo's characters were so underdeveloped and missing any nuance. Most of the book gets the same treatment. The tempo change in the last 30 pages feels like a whole other book, not necessarily better or worse, and the SA scene kicking it off felt really cheap and gross.

 I think the author had some great beginnings that I wish were pursued more. Blanca having children out of obligation was so relatable for many women, and a strong story that deserved more than two lines. The same with Olga and Matteo's decision to give up IVF at the age of ~40, them not seeing any need for a child. There were so many more, but I would've also loved to hear more about Olga's fathers' death after getting hooked on heroin in the army, and her shame being in such a different standing than her parents- a very real story for children of immigrants. 

Tiffany Stewart

I think the book did a fantastic job at bringing light and awareness to Puerto Rico's abuse under American rule, and that is why I gave it three stars. I really enjoyed the historical tidbits and I think the story got a lot of grounding from that. I wish the characters got more development, at times things seemed way too black and white, and the "bad guys" were caricatures of evil and things just too convenient and almost comical at times. I think it's a good beach read, but the story line felt too whimsical for the very serious message it was trying to convey. 

[Spoilers] 

 The pacing of the story really dragged on in the beginning, but the characters were so undeveloped. Rich and Matteo's characters were so underdeveloped and missing any nuance. Most of the book gets the same treatment. The tempo change in the last 30 pages feels like a whole other book, not necessarily better or worse, and the SA scene kicking it off felt really cheap and gross.

 I think the author had some great beginnings that I wish were pursued more. Blanca having children out of obligation was so relatable for many women, and a strong story that deserved more than two lines. The same with Olga and Matteo's decision to give up IVF at the age of ~40, them not seeing any need for a child. There were so many more, but I would've also loved to hear more about Olga's fathers' death after getting hooked on heroin in the army, and her shame being in such a different standing than her parents- a very real story for children of immigrants. 

tbh my frustration came from the characters massive self awareness that always seemed 95% and that last bit just out of reach until the end, which makes sense for plot progression and storytelling.

regardless: a great book, a great story, and the conclusion made any frustrations worth it tho I wish the third act had began earlier than it did for Olga and Prieto.

Cici Pearson

tbh my frustration came from the characters massive self awareness that always seemed 95% and that last bit just out of reach until the end, which makes sense for plot progression and storytelling.

regardless: a great book, a great story, and the conclusion made any frustrations worth it tho I wish the third act had began earlier than it did for Olga and Prieto.

Shareca

Olga Dies Dreaming
Xochitl Gonzalez
★★★★

Our culture is profoundly influenced by where we originate, the places that make us the person we are today. It is this intriguing quality of Olga Dies Dreaming that makes it enchanting. In what ways can we drive forward our cultural narrative while staying true to ourselves? Olga, and her brother, Pedro, grapple with this question, and many others, together.

The culture, language, and atmosphere made me feel at home. As far as I am aware, I am Black, but I do have Mexican/Latino relatives, which makes this more personal than most. I was surrounded by much of this lingo as a child, so I am able to relate, making it a truly delightful experience to read. Having a sense of belonging was wonderful. Because of Olga and her inability to know what she is doing, even at her age, I feel good about where I am in life too. That is a comforting feeling. She and Pedro both provide a sense of relatability that gives it an air of intimacy. The challenges they face and the obstacles they must overcome are genuine: sexuality, trauma, love, children, and renunciation. Each of them can be felt. It allows us to appreciate that we are not linked to our trauma by our identities as members of POC. Irrespective of what we have endured, we can be whoever we wish to be, regardless of our age. Olga Dies Dreaming demonstrates this characteristic powerfully.

The book explores the notion of generations, this narrative of pushing culture, while at the same time wanting to embody what it is to be a part of the culture. This tendency to want to do things one way, particularly among baby boomers, is what is leading to their children's/"ours" identity crisis. It makes us question: Have we, as millennials, done enough? Have we sacrificed enough? Have we *yelled* enough? Although it might seem that we have not done enough by the likes of our parents, we have. In fact, we are doing our utmost to safeguard ourselves and our future. Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez is a powerful novel that examines human nature.

Megan Snodgrass

I am truly a glutton for a multi-generational family book told from multiple perspectives. Let me eat up all of those secrets, lies, and dramaaa. This one does mainly focus on, spoiler, Olga, but also dives a lot into Prieto (Olga’s brother) as well. At the heart of it, the book shows how each sibling is still dealing with their mothers abandonment, whilst she’s still writing both trying to pass off self-righteous missives as mothering.. and yet how they’re both trying to live up to and impress her by turning into the “American Dream” even though that’s exactly what their mother despises. Both siblings are living with the choices they’ve made but when some of those secrets and buried feelings start surfacing they must figure out how to live for themselves and not for the omniscient voice of their mother who along ago gave up on them.

You also get a lot of thick sociopolitical lessons on Puerto Rico’s history which I loved because I won’t lie I was painfully under-informed their struggles which comes mainly at the hand of the US. 

The humor is also great in this book. I genuinely liked Olga and Prieto, but I especially liked some of the secondary characters as well that help Olga and Prieto find their way.

I am grateful for Xochitl. It's so rare that I get to see my stories in print. She was ambitious. She attempted to cover numerous themes in one novel causing her to rely on platitudes to summarize really complex ideas / problems. I would have loved a series to understand what formed Mami and abuela. It would have also provided a vehicle for the various transgressions against Puerto Rico to be handled with more depth.

Michele

It's 2017, and Olga and her brother, Pedro 'Prieto' Acevedo, are bold-faced names in their hometown of New York. Prieto is a popular congressman representing their gentrifying, Latinx neighborhood in Brooklyn, while Olga is the tony wedding planner for Manhattan's power brokers. Despite their alluring public lives, behind closed doors things are far less rosy. Sure, Olga can orchestrate the love stories of the one percent, but she can't seem to find her own . . . until she meets Matteo, who forces her to confront the effects of long-held family secrets. Twenty-seven years ago, their mother, Blanca, a Young Lord-turned-radical, abandoned her children to advance a militant political cause, leaving them to be raised by their grandmother. Now, with the winds of hurricane season, Blanca has come barreling back into their lives. Set against the backdrop of New York City in the months surrounding the most devastating hurricane in Puerto Rico's history, Olga Dies Dreaming is a story that examines political corruption, familial strife and the very notion of the American dream - all while asking what it really means to weather a storm.

Sarai Johnson

3.5 stars rounded up. 

The first half was a real slog. I was very close to giving up when the story finally got some meat on its bones. 

I like the complexity of the Revolutionary Mother. I think there was more to be said there, however. 

Also, I’m very very bored of the exact same take on gentrification in New York. There’s got to be some new to be said in the last 30 years. Also, Olga herself, is a gentrifier as she lives in a brand new building, no? I’d like to read about the reluctant or self-aware (at the very least) brown/black gentrifier please. 

If the first half were the first quarter, I would give full four stars.

Gisela Ayala 

Wow. I am shook to the core. This book is a work of art and everyone should try to read this book. I'll leave you all with this quote: 

"No American can be truly free while we still have colonies. If your rights are less because you are born in one place, not another, how meaningful are those rights in the first place?"

There is so much to say about this book that I fear I don't have the words to describe its masterful storytelling of distress and the pursuit of happiness.

Olga and her brother Prieto are haunted by their mother's dream for Puerto Rico's freedom. They struggle for years to forge their own paths in the wake of her disappearance. But while they have found a version of success, the pains of abandonment and the weight of their mother's goal have crushed them. When there are no more milestones to hit, they meander through life wondering what could come next.

I'm so glad I picked up this novel. It felt like walking into the streets of Brooklyn and really seeing it without the rose-colored-tourist lenses. Gonzalez's ability to weave emotional growth into the lives of people we wouldn't normally get a peek into is quite frankly beautiful. I found myself captured by Olga's mix of brutality and empathy. Her brother is just as fascinating with his devotion to everyone in his community to the point of sacrificing himself.

This book will keep you reading, not because it has a suspenseful plot or incredible love story, but because you can't help but care for these complex people that are simply doing their best in a world that wants them to fail.

Camryn Lang

There is so much to say about this book that I fear I don't have the words to describe its masterful storytelling of distress and the pursuit of happiness.

Olga and her brother Prieto are haunted by their mother's dream for Puerto Rico's freedom. They struggle for years to forge their own paths in the wake of her disappearance. But while they have found a version of success, the pains of abandonment and the weight of their mother's goal have crushed them. When there are no more milestones to hit, they meander through life wondering what could come next.

I'm so glad I picked up this novel. It felt like walking into the streets of Brooklyn and really seeing it without the rose-colored-tourist lenses. Gonzalez's ability to weave emotional growth into the lives of people we wouldn't normally get a peek into is quite frankly beautiful. I found myself captured by Olga's mix of brutality and empathy. Her brother is just as fascinating with his devotion to everyone in his community to the point of sacrificing himself.

This book will keep you reading, not because it has a suspenseful plot or incredible love story, but because you can't help but care for these complex people that are simply doing their best in a world that wants them to fail.

OLGA DIES DREAMING by Xochitl Gonzalez is a forthcoming title from Flatiron Books.

Fraser Simons

Olga and her brother share a narrative in which their radicalized mother abandons them for a cause, leaving them to forge a path as Latinx people trying to break into white centric career paths. As they cope with childhood trauma and try to make their mark, they each reach crisis points at intersections of their identity as gentrification and corruption encroach and subsume them. 

As a whole, I’d describe this as incredibly ambitious, and that’s why it didn’t quite succeed, for me. No source of narrative tension introduced, plot beat or otherwise, gets actually resolved or interrogated in any meaningful way. It scratches the surface of a lot of issues while eschewing things already introduced. 

The resolution with Olga herself and the romantic interest is basically a deus ex machina moment off the back of a sexual assault that becomes a plot device for that relationship. I really, really disliked the handling of that. But the issue persists in every moment that is supposed to have, causing me to put the number one criticism I have as unearned moments. The prose work is generic and macro and there’s no weight given to anything that happens as a result. It never fully managed to have me invested in any particular thread, nor was I convinced the narrative itself was.

Jessica Bateson

Really enjoyed this and learnt a lot. Bridges modern day life and discussion of Puerto Rican vs American culture / history very well.

Samantha Kalany Hughes

What a spectacular way to start off my 2022 reading journey. 
Of course, I'm so thankful for Goodreads and Flatiron Books for this opportunity to review an ARC copy of Olga Dies Dreaming and I was absolutely catapulted into a state of warmth after reading about the lives of Olga and Prieto as they navigate two different but intertwined NYC borough lives.

With flashbacks as forms of emotionally-abusive letters from their neglecting mother, this book kicks off in 2017 and walks through the reactions of Puerto Ricans and their mainland family members after two of the most catastrophic tropical storms that PR experienced in the year, including Irma and Maria. 

Olga and Prieto learn to find themselves and their happiness through a course of events that took them both to their knees, but it's how they build themselves backup that's so inspirational and heartfelt for those living the "American Dream." 

5/5 Stars and will definitely recommend this one to friends.

Cola

An absolute must read for everyone, but particularly if you grew up in south Brooklyn and know what it’s like to watch the neighborhood you love disappear before your eyes.

Olga Dies Dreaming

Reviews