Media: E-book: Nook
Rating 4 out of 5 stars
Recommendation: If you enjoy memoirs and life stories. Would I return to it? Probably not, memoirs are not my go to read, but I did enjoy reading this one. Albina has a voice that resonates off the page.
All Albina Hume wanted was to either hide her inability to pronounce the letter “R” or correct it. Never did she think her inability would take her down the paths that it did. She struggled to find ways to hide her mispronunciation including trying to learn English. Her journey begins with her fear of being unable to find love and get married because a boy in her class called her a “crow” and in her mind ‘who would want to marry a crow?’ This instills her fear of the inability to pronounce R words. That fear takes her down many roads including a pyramid beauty business, strip clubs, even a prison cell for 51 days. She encounters con men, unhealthy relationships, endangering friendships, and more. Everything she goes through drives her force to find her dreams, yet she is held back by her fears. Once she releases those fears, the possibility for her dreams become endless.
From the very beginning, in the prologue, Albina pulls at
the readers’ emotions as she describes her excitement for her wedding. While reading readers can’t help but also
wonder what significance the day has until she reveals it is on the same date
she was raped 10 years prior. She
mentions this incident early on in the story giving the impression, the book
will have something to do with overcoming it and the emotions related to the
act. But once readers get to that point,
it is done and over with and she moves on to something else. With that being said the rest of the books
keeps readers mystified as Albina struggles with her inability to pronounce the
letter ‘R’, to being conned into travelling to Greece illegally, and even being in
jail for several days among other things.
Despite everything the story is that of a woman who overcomes all her
struggles, all the bumps and bruises of life to find all her dreams coming
true.
The tone of the book is very
casual as if the author is speaking to a close personal friend; this allows the
reader to feel connected with her and her story. It is a touching tale of a woman struggling to find the happiness we all long for. Her quest for this happiness causes her to make decisions based on impulse and desire. She hops from one relationship to another looking for love it isn't until she meets Abelardo and his desire to NOT have children does she look out for her own desires. She then gets introduced to the man who will become her husband. Her journey is not an easy one, it is filled with trials, and heartache.
