Reviews

Lucky Broken Girl by Ruth Behar

pipn_t's review

adventurous hopeful sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This author is so good 

roseleaf24's review against another edition

4.0

Truly touching story of a young Cuban refugee, injured in a car accident in 1966, and confined to her bed in a body cast for 8 months. The family life is realistic and heartfelt, and Ruthie's friendships bring life to the story. As one who is eagerly awaiting the end of her own brokenness, I am grateful to live in an era in which doctors are reluctant to cast injuries. If my doctor had thought like Ruthie's, I would likely be in a full torso cast instead of a sling; she had a broken leg, but they casted both legs and hips! I struggled a bit with the theological viewpoint of this; it is unsurprising to me that the author is an anthropologist.

katherinezee's review

emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This middle grades novel closely mirrors the author’s childhood experiences as a young girl whose Jewish family immigrated to the States  from Cuba following the 1959 Revolution.  Nearly all of the 30,900 Jews in Cuba fled, most to the U.S. The story begins with Ruti’s struggles to adjust to the hustle and bustle of life in New York City and to fit in at a new school.  She quickly learns English and works hard to achieve academically and to make friends. Then one night after Ruti’s family were out celebrating the New Year with friends, a group of boys crash into their car, severely injuring Ruti, forcing her into a full body cast for many months. She becomes a prisoner in her own room, unable to leave her bed while her body heals.  It’s hard to imagine a story could possibly be spun from such a confined main character and setting, but between the colorful characters who come to visit and the life altering lessons Ruti learns while being a prisoner in her own home, this tale was one I hated to end. Knowing that the characters are real and the events true, made this story a fascinating window into the lives of the Cuban refugees who legally immigrated into the U.S.  The author’s voice has a lyricism and a lilt that cause the story to shimmer. 

NOTE TO MIDDLE GRADES and SECONDARY ESOL TEACHERS:  

This tale epitomizes the multicultural novel with characters who are immigrants from all parts of the globe. Religion adds another element as Ruti is not just Hispanic, but a Hispanic Jew. 

kimiloughlin's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

4.25

Came to this one after reading Behar's newest (Across So Many Seas) and wow. I truly love Behar's writing and how she cleverly weaves her own family's histories and intricacies in her books. I truly felt Ruthie's pain and growth. 

belathora's review

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

bickie's review against another edition

I really wanted to like this book but just cannot recommend it despite the secular Jewish family from Poland/Russia via Cuba living in Queens with immigrant neighbors from many different countries. Mostly, the book is just way too ableist. There are too many references to "the dumb class" (described as remedial and where "misbehaving" kids end up), including in the author's note, where she does not take the opportunity to describe that while that is hurtful language, it's true to what Ruthie would have felt (did feel) at the time; she just keeps using it outside of the book. There is also too much unexamined discussion of how horrible it is that Ruthie has broken her leg, may never walk again, may be an "invalid" stuck in bed her whole life. While she does learn to have a rich life, especially through reading and painting, the disabled-ness is viewed as terrible and a tragedy, reinforcing ableist stereotypes.

While I appreciate that the author experienced this trauma and that it is an "own voices" book set in the late 1960s when it happened to her, I am also disappointed that an editor did not at least encourage an author's note about how many disabled people live full, rich lives without walking or while spending most of their time unmoving, and about calling a class at school "the dumb class." Additionally, although there is a brief allusion to people "broken" in ways that are not obvious, I'm not a fan of calling people "broken."

I listened to this book, and the narration is extremely clunky and not at all engaging, particularly for the intended middle-grade audience. Attempts at British/Indian, Belgian, and Belgian/Moroccan accents are unsuccessful and would have been better left ignored. Pacing was disjointed, with many sentences? feeling like? they were being. broken up? in funny places? and many phrases and sentences ending in a questioning upward lilt when it did not make sense. Other words were reallllllllly elooooooongated in ways that did not feel natural. The most realistic-sounding "voice" was that of Amara, the occupational therapist who came to her house to help Ruthie learn to walk again.

sarahbaileyreads's review

5.0

“All we can do is have faith that life leads us where it does for a reason, so we can learn things we didn’t know about ourselves. One day you will look back on your suffering and you will find a meaning for it and that will be your story.”

Lucky Broken Girl is such a beautiful story. This was an incredibly refreshing YA novel/memoir that had such depth and I cannot wait to have this book in my classroom library.

tiffster's review

2.0

Please minimize your pain and suffering to make everyone around you feel better. Also, you should feel really lucky because you didn't die and only broke your leg. And even though you weren't driving your dad's car, and you're just a young girl who was in the back of your family's vehicle when it got hit by another car, everyone is mad at you because you got injured, because now they have to adjust their lives to care for you. They blame you. Like you got injured on purpose, to interrupt everyone else's life.

And you have questions, and no one wants to answer you. And you just want to be a young kid, but you're trapped in your room, and you're sad, but no one wants you to actually be sad. So, you hide your tears, and cry at night, and lie to your mom about all the tissues in your room.

Also, don't get fat.

Also, I recommend that you do not listen to the audio, because the author does not do a great job at reading her own book.

#TheDumbClass #Commiserate

mbrandmaier's review

4.0

This is a story of perseverance in the face of adversity. Ruthie badly breaks her leg in a car accident and must stay in bed in a full body cast for close to a year. Just thinking about being trapped immobile like that makes me shudder with claustrophobia.

In spite of being trapped in bed, Ruthie is able to experience many moments of joy during her confinement. A teacher aptly named Miss Joy comes to give Ruthie her school lessons so that she won’t fall behind in school. There is a neighbor and friend, Chico, who awakens Ruthie’s love of making art. And though they have their ups and downs, Ruthie is surrounded by family who loves her and is praying for her recovery.

cedardleland's review

challenging emotional hopeful slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0