Blondie and the García Girls

Blondie Knows Best (another mostly generic title not very tied to the plot) is overall an enjoyable addition to the film series. The plot summary that is currently at that link is thin and misleading. The problem is Dagwood accidentally damaged his new neighbor's house, not some business-related issue.  

This week's entry benefits greatly from Shemp Howard (one of the Stooges), who plays a myopic process server. His role is part of an interrelated bunch of complications, which this series does a good job of putting together into one united plot bundle. 

The film has the by now (over halfway through) standard plot developments, including a need for money, a chance for Blondie to get jealous, and some scenes where she reassures she is happy with her current marriage and family situation. And, of course, for the ever-aggravated J.C. Dithers to have a reason to fire Bumstead without actually finalizing it. 

(This turns out to be the actor's last appearance as the boss. An actor who plays a different role here will step in as the new boss next time.)  

How the García Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez is something of a classic. The disclaimer is how these things should be written. Some disclaimers in historical fiction state that nothing is factual. Nonetheless, the work is clearly based on true events. They are just used in a fictional way. This is the case here. 

The author's life patterns the book to some degree. Her father, like the girls of the title, had to flee the Dominican Republic after a failed attempt to overturn the dictator who governed there. The book is the first book of her long career (about thirty years). It is a series of vignettes about the lives of four sisters, for some reason told in reverse order.

The book starts with a now adult daughter visiting the Dominican Republic. There are three parts, covering events back to when they were still living on the island. The stories are told from various points of view, sometimes in the first person, sometimes not. They are of varying levels of interest. The whole thing ends with a rather weird (probably metaphorical) story about one of the young girls taking a tiny kitten away from her mother.  

I think the final stories were the least interesting. The overall style also comes off as somewhat garbled. I appreciated the use of different perspectives. When I tried to write a few short stories, I used that technique. Nonetheless, overall, the book comes off as an incomplete accounting of these characters. 

I did not like the book as a whole. It was more of a "whole not as good as the sum of its parts" deal. It was well-written and relatively painless to read in that regard. I know books should not be seen as medicine or some sort of required reading. Nonetheless, I do like to be able to finish reading books. 

Anyway, my copy also has a "for the reader" section with a narrative from the author, a book summary, reader questions, and further reading.