On the very first page of Neruda on the Park, debut author Cleyvis Natera drops readers into the boom and crash of a demolition. Fractured brownstone, shattered glass. A wrecking ball, mid-swing. Change is coming to the fictional, predominantly-Dominican neighborhood of Nothar Park. An aged tenement building being torn down in New York City is a telltale sign that gentrification will soon sweep in. But is it a threat? It depends on who you ask.

Ask Eusebia Guerrero, an elder in the community, and she’d likely tell you the world is ending. She receives each construction blow in horror. With growing distress, she asks herself more than once, “How to fix this mess?”

Or ask Luz Guerrero, Eusebia’s daughter. A rising associate at a top Manhattan law firm, Luz seems ambivalent about her neighborhood being at the cusp of gentrification. She never felt like she belonged there, anyway.

“When they first arrived in this country, Eusebia had insisted Luz not forget their true home had been left behind, that this new place, with its hard ground and impossible language, was hostile,” Natera writes. “But over time, Eusebia had created an entire new world in it. Listening to her now, Luz marveled at the change, wondering exactly what it was about this place that had won her mother over.”

Luz claims to know how her neighborhood’s story ends – with change, yes, and yoga and endless mimosa brunch spots. But with Neruda on the Park, out on May 24, readers have no idea how this story will end, or could end, or should end. Natera brings us an intricate novel about a Dominican mother and daughter who step into markedly different paths when faced with gentrification. Fueled by anger and the fear of her community’s displacement, Eusebia concocts a crime ring to try to stop the luxury condo building from going up. And Luz – freshly-fired from her firm – finds herself in a sizzling romance with the white developer of the company her mother fervently opposes. This is a story about family, sacrifice, loyalty, the meaning of home, and how far one is willing to go to protect it.

Natera, herself born in the Dominican Republic before migrating to the United States at ten years old, wrote Neruda on the Park over the course of fifteen years. That she tended to this story for so long is evident by her gorgeous prose, the novel’s myriad of characters and the ways their lives interconnect, and the many pressures she layers onto Eusebia and Luz. In the background, we sympathize with Eusebia’s husband, Vladimir, who has been secretly plotting with Luz to build a dream home back in the Dominican Republic. His job as a police detective has worn him down, but he maintains a determined eye on retirement.

At the heart of the novel is Luz and Eusebia, and the ways in which their relationship is challenged and reshaped as a result of this looming threat in the shape of concrete beams. The chapters alternate between their points of view, giving us an intimate look at their internal struggles and the growing rift between them when Eusebia finds out Luz is dating the man behind the development.

On the page, Natera takes extra care in breathing life into the women. In Eusebia, for example, I saw a hard-working Dominican mother who prides herself in putting her daughter and husband first – at the detriment of herself. There’s no better demonstration of this than our introduction to Eusebia in the second chapter. Natera opens up with Eusebia making breakfast for Luz and Vladimir. She starts by setting the greca on the stove, then sliding pieces of bread into the toaster. Then, Natera writes: “Removed eggs from the refrigerator and put three in a small pot filled with water for Luz, who would only eat the egg whites, and left three on the side for Vladimir, who would only eat his fried over hard. Vladimir’s eggs needed to reach room temperature before she dropped them in the pan. Later, she’d place each fried egg on top of the not-too-toasted bread.”

It’s not a far stretch to say that Eusebia’s caretaker role brings a bit of discomfort to the reader, and it’s clear early on that there’s a codependency between mother and daughter. Eusebia loves her family, and that love will push her to take drastic action.

To make her crime spree happen, Eusebia enlists the help of The Tongues – her bingo-playing triplet friends who are also community fixtures in Nothar Park. “What if we just scare everyone into thinking this neighborhood is really bad?” she asks them. The women come up with a list of fake crimes and promptly get to work.

In Neruda, Natera does an effective job at making you care for not only Eusebia, Luz, and Vladimir, but for the rest of the cast. One of the most delightful parts of the book, for example, are the carefully crafted interludes by The Tongues. There’s one that made me literally laugh out loud, in which the triplets described the sheer ridiculousness of one of the fake crimes gone wrong. Their short chapters are a welcome respite from the escalating drama and tension between Eusebia and Luz. We also grow concerned for the future of Angélica, Luz’s childhood best friend and a mother of twins whose family is likely to get pushed out by gentrification. And then there’s Cuca, Eusebia’s sister, who traveled to the Dominican Republic for a full-body cosmetic renovation to keep her husband from cheating on her again. These additional characters provide a richer portrait of a community of people with individual struggles and hopes.

As I read chapter after chapter – and as the story marched along – I found myself feeling on edge. I wondered how far Eusebia would take her plan. Who else would get hurt? And, most critically, how would this affect the already strained relationship between mother and daughter? Will mother and daughter get back to how they were before, or will their dynamic be irrevocably changed by the story’s dramatic climax?

After finishing Neruda on the Park, Eusebia and Luz lingered in my mind for days. I thought about what home is, and how it can hold different meanings for people – even members of the same family. I was also left with so much gratitude to Natera for not giving up on her book – a story told with so much love and care for a community of immigrants and their children, and the life they’ve managed to stitch together in the face of so many obstacles.

The Guerreros live together in the Nothar Park neighborhood of the city which is about to undergo gentrification with the tearing down of an abandoned building to make room for luxury condos. And, even more confounding to them and their neighbors, they receive notification that their own building where they've lived for twenty years, will soon be converted to condos. Luz Guerrero is an up and coming lawyer working for a Manhattan law firm, fully expecting to be given news of a promotion when she meets her boss for breakfast at a fancy restaurant...but instead she is shocked to be told she is going to be let go. The story alternates between Luz and Eusebia's perspectives which works well for this story of two such different women. Natera vividly brings that whole unique Dominican neighborhood to life with her many eccentric characters and their hopes, dreams and worries. An entertaining story of strained but loving relationships. The character development in the novel seems choppy. We never really understand Luz's motivations and many of the events seem disjointed, particularly towards the end in regards to Luz and Hudson's relationship. Eusebia's plan to save the neighborhood happens with the buy-in of many of their building's residents, but there is no indication why some of them make these life-altering choices. The only constant character is Vladimir, Luz's father and Eusebia's husband. His focus is on retiring from the NYPD to the Dominican Republic and building a house for him and Eusebia to spend their days. I just continued to wonder while reading when something was going to happen to complete some of the many threads in this book that do not seem to align with each other, it felt very disjointed and not a cohesive story. I really wanted to like it but due to these reasons it fell flat.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House-Ballantine, and Cleyvis Natera for an ARC

I enjoyed this book. I felt it went from one thing to another quickly, that is why I gave it a 4 star. Besides that, it was interesting. I would still recommend this book!

I really enjoyed the beginning of this novel and thought it had so much promise. Unfortunately, it could not keep my attention and seemed to go all over the place, and I was diverted down a million side alleys I didn’t enjoy heading down. Ultimately it wasn’t my cup of tea. I couldn’t relate to the characters, and they didn’t feel like real people to me. The middle went on forever and final I was forced to quit reading it.

I was given a complimentary copy of the digital ARC by the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I love books with strongs themes surrounding gentrification. I enjoyed this nicely crafted book! It raises many questions and would be an ideal choice for a book club as well as personal reading. Thanks to Penguin Random House for alloing me to be an early reader in exchange for an honest review.

A mesmerizing account of a community impacted by gentrification, and policies that disproportionately impact immigrant communities in ways that challenge upward mobility, access & inclusion. It’s a story about family, friendship, identity and making your own way in the world.

This book was much more than I expected. A book that is so poignant for what is going on in the world and how it is effecting the people in it. While I don't live in an area where I am trying to be forced out of my home, I have family who are in areas where it could soon be coming. I was able to relate to both Luz and Eusebia in how they approached the issue in their own way.

But additionally, I could fully relate to Luz and her need/obligation to do what her parents thought was best for her. While my mother has never said the things that Eusebia said to Luz, doing better than most and working hard was something that was just expected of me. And I have had the same struggles as Luz deciding if my prestigious job is what I really want to do.

This was such a great book, everyone should read it.

Nothing about this book went where I expected it to, but I ended up really enjoying it. The author is great at creating a strong sense of place, and I enjoyed the multi POV. It was just very well done!

The middle of the book dragged a bit, and the ending turned a little cheesy to me. But overall, the themes, characters, and general atmosphere had me hooked.

Recommended for literary fiction readers and fans of family dramas/stories of finding your path.

I love that this story is not just about a family, but about the community. It is such a richer experience that the entire world is brought in to describe this family.

I enjoyed reading this book it was an interesting journey to follow with the family members and the different paths they took. It got me thinking about how and what our parents want of us sometimes is not what we want for ourselves.

I unfortunately never got through this book. I enjoyed it but never enough to just sit and keep reading.

I liked this one. I enjoyed the dual perspectives, going back and forth between Luz and her mother, Eusebia. I have to say that I liked reading Luz's sections more, but that could be a generational thing - while I'm in between their two ages, I'm closer to Luz's age, and I more related to her life than her mom's. However, Eusebia's perspective gave a unique picture into what it is like for people who have their homes removed from them because of gentrification - the particular feeling of living in a place for years and years, it's your family, your home, your neighborhood, your friends, and all of these things are taken from you. This is something I've never experienced and likely will never experience, so I appreciated Natera giving me that point of view through Eusebia's eyes. There were a few plot points in the book that distracted from the crux of the story, and I didn't ever feel like I HAD to keep reading it, but overall it was an enjoyable novel with an important story to tell.

A wonderful debut that follows the Guerreros as they each handle the gentrification of their neighborhood differently. Vladimir wants to return to the Dominican Republic. Eusebia has dangerous plans in mind to stop construction and their daughter, Luz happens to fall for the developer.
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This is a story of sacrifice, love and what home means to many different people.
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Thank you #randomhouse and #NetGalley for an Advanced copy in exchange for an honest Review

I found this storyline to be a little quirky. I enjoyed the family and felt for their fight to save their home and neighborhood. There are a lot of good teachings in this book, about life, love, being a woman, and the pursuit of happiness and I really liked all of these.

It isn't until the end of the we learn the why behind the quirky behaviors, I'm not into spoiling a book for readers but I can tell you that this was quite a revelation that made me put down the book for a while in order to digest the information.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Sometimes family dramas really work for me and sometimes they don’t. Unfortunately, this one just wasn’t for me, though I think many people will find value in it!

Many thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for my feedback. I really wanted to love this book and it was a solid debut, but ultimately I just didn’t connect with the story or the characters.

I enjoyed this book. It definately showed how a community can work together to get things done. It also shows how a fmaily can be torn apart and put back together as things change around them.



** I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review**

Neruda on the Park by Cleyvis Natera was one of the few books I finished last month, and YOOOOOO. Eusebia was wild! It felt appropriate to pair the book with Where the Wild Hops are by @dogfishhead because things ESCALATE and my heart rate was definitely up a few times reading this book.

I really admire the way Natera writes the tension between past and present, especially how it affects characters’ relationships. It’s so beautifully done, as is how vividly the characters from around the neighborhood are written—they all felt real and familiar to me. It was like I KNEW these people and I love that I saw myself and my experience in these pages. I definitely recommend this book and can’t wait to read more of Cleyvis Natera’s work in the future!

AMAZING! What a wonderful debut by a new Dominican author. This story touched me. The writing was impactful. Natera is definitely one to watch out for. I can't wait to see what else she publishes in the future!

I typically enjoy a good multicultural novel but I struggled to get into this one. Might have just been me though because the reviews have been almost universally positive so I will chalk it up to a reading slump on my part.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.