This one was told in such a unique format. It was different from my usual read but a super beautiful coming of age story

I truly appreciated the format to tell Luciana's story through one-sided phone conversations. It made me think of all those times that someone in my family is on the phone, and we are only responding/reacting to the (limited) information we have from them. The characters were relatable, and it was a powerful debut for Melissa Mogollon. I can't wait to read more of Mogollon's work!

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my opinion and review!

Can this book feel more relatable??? I loved it, her family is so funny, I felt like I was reading about mine. I will say this, the flow of this book is a little different, I had to start again after 2 chapters because I was losing myself, it’s not very traditional in the way I read books, I used a ton of quotes to add emphasis so when I don’t see any it in the beginning was a little hard, since mine was an ARC I just went with the flow.

This was like having a funny, heartfelt and endearing conversation with a ✨younger✨ friend.

I audibly laughed out loud several times and really connected with Lucianna and Abue’s story. It was sad, frustrating and brave and she deserved the biggest hug!

This is a fairly quick and easy read. The chapters are short and I love that there are Spanish references (many I understood but a few I looked up)

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 3.75 Really liked it, read it!

I just want to start off with how fast I read this book and how much I loved the chapter titles being in Spanish.

It did take me a minute to figure out how to read it because it’s mostly through phone calls, but once you get into it, you can’t stop. I loved how I could relate to every character and even go…she’s like my tia….she’s like my prima, etc!

Thank you for writing this!! It was truly entertaining and awesome.

Oye by Melissa Mogollon is a coming of age story about dramatic family dynamics during and after a crisis. A hurricane is on its way, and the residents of Florida have to evacuate. But Luciana's grandmother is refusing to leave. The story is told from the pov of Luciana via phone calls to her sister. So yes, you basically only get Luciana's perspective, but I promise it's worth it. It's almost like you're on the phone call with her, just listening in. I thought that brought such a unique element to the story.

Oye touches on themes like feeling alone in your family, relationships between siblings, caring for an older adult even when they don't want to be cared for, telling your truth, and about being accepted.

I thought the story was great. I am definitely interested in listening to the audiobook because I feel like this is probably going to be perfect for an audio read!

DNF @35%

I really don't know how anyone can get through this one. There are no quotation marks on any of the dialogue which makes for a very confusing reading experience. I don't know which character is speaking, and this whole book is mostly just phone conversations. The synopsis sounded more interesting than the actual book. The only positive is the stunning cover art.

I must say, Oye is written in a context I've never faced before, and, though it took a bit to really get into the way it was written, I really enjoyed the idea and critical thinking behind the storyline.

We follow along with Luciana and her side of phone calls to her college-aged sister, Mari. Luciana is a senior in high school, and is with her mom fleeing from a hurricane set to hit South East Florida. When the impact locations switch, her mom takes her along on a journey, and we catch a glimpse of the goings on of Luciana's family, primarily of her grandma, Abue, who refused to leave her home and flee from the hurricane.

Once we get into the meat of the story, Luciana's world comes crashing down, and we follow along each step of the way, overhearing her phone calls, in a sense, to Mari, cataloguing the events as they occur.

I loved this writing concept, and think it a very unique and lovely way to follow along with a story written like this.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Generational trauma and Familial Disrespect

I was excited to read this YA novel of the one-sided telephone conversations between sisters, Luciana and Mari. Luciana is a senior in high school trying to navigate life without her older sister, Mari.
While the premise is promising, the narrative is packed with gossip, drama, and unhealthy relationships. Lack of resolution leads to an 'every man for himself' style of living, right up to the end.
Not an edifying read for teens or adults.

"Pay attention. This is how people end up with pain and illnesses. They go through difficult things, and then they don’t find a place to put those feelings. So their bodies take it all for them."⁣
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Summary⁣
Structured as a series of one-sided phone calls from our spunky, sarcastic narrator, Luciana, to her older sister, Mari. As the baby of her large Colombian American family, Luciana is usually relegated to the sidelines. But now she finds herself as the only voice of reason in the face of an unexpected crisis: A hurricane is heading straight for Miami, and her eccentric grandmother, Abue, is refusing to evacuate. Abue is so one-of-a-kind she’s basically in her own universe, and while she often drives Luciana nuts, they’re the only ones who truly understand each other. So when Abue, normally glamorous and full of life, receives a shocking medical diagnosis during the storm, Luciana’s world is upended.⁣
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I will be honest, this structure and style took me a bit to get into -- and I had even set the physical copy down and waited until I got the audio from Libby. Once I settled into the style and got over how many times the narrator says 'dude', I was all in. This book has heart, growth, humor, and sadness. ⁣
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If you are looking for a great audiobook that delivers in a unique way, this may be the book for you.⁣
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Thank you @netgalley for this free copy in exchange for my honest review.⁣
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Do you enjoy when a book has a unique style?

Ingenious Debut

This author has the background to make this story and format more than credible. Melissa Mogollon is from Colombia, raised in Florida and holds an MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop in addition to a BA from George Washington U.

The structure of this novel is phone calls. They are taking place in tragic and exhaustive revelations in this Colombian family living in Florida. Florida is gearing up for Hurricane Irma to make landfall and the family is to evacuate. Luciana turns to phoning and leaving messages to her older sister, Mari, who is studying at George Washington University. Luciana needs her older sister; she is not the favored daughter and is bereft at having this imminent responsibility of her mother and grandmother, Abue. Abue is usually a glitzy woman who presents a glamorous appearance. Despite the fact that she has been given a devastating medical diagnosis, Abue ignores it and shares her secrets with Luciana.

Albeit a great burden, Luciana steps into the role of confidante and caretaker; meanwhile she is hiding the fact from their mother that she prefers girls. Ms. Mogollon literary technique worked; I felt I was eavesdropping on a family who were in overwhelming circumstances with the youngest sister as an exciting narrator.

My gratitude to Hogarth Press and NetGalley for this pre-published book. All opinions expressed are my own.

resting approach to a story and while it took me some time to get used to, I ended up really loving it! I am going to miss Luciana a lot!

Oye is a coming of age story told through phone conversations between Luciana and her older sister Mari. It is only Luciana that you hear speaking and I know that sounds a bit odd but it really worked.

The story showcases some really important and complex topics that are balanced with humor and grace. I work with at-risk teenagers and want to give all of them this story.

I loved the exploration of family dynamics especially mother-daughter and sibling, sexuality, and belonging. I absolutely adored Luciana’s Abue so much and really, really wish I could meet her. Do you ever have characters that you love that much?

I really think I am going to get the audio when this is released tomorrow as I loved the story, the characters, and the whole vibe of this book that much!

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for the early copy

This comes out tomorrow!

4.25 stars

Oye by Melissa Mogollon is a humorous and heartfelt coming-of-age story that wonderfully blends drama and family dynamics.
I enjoyed reading this story and the writing was engaging.

Thank You NetGalley and Publisher for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for this Advanced Reader Copy of @melissamogollonwriter’s Oye.

Review contains spoilers.

First, this book is laugh-out-loud funny that I actually choked on my own saliva at 2 am while trying to suppress a hysterical laugh from coming out! The story is told in a unique format: from a first person narrative via one-way telephone conversation. Once you get into the groove of the narrating style, this witty and entertaining read becomes hard to put down (can be read in one day).

This multigenerational coming-of-age telenovela explores the realities of being a second generation Colombian-American teen, the patriarchal Colombian society, toxic masculinity, sexuality and complex family relationships. In the heart of the story is a granddaughter’s immense love and adoration for her grandmother, a vivacious and larger-than-life character.

Luciana’s frustration with her appearance-obsessed culture also resonated with me. I also grew up with a generation of women who cared too much about looks, material things and reputation, and considered them as true measures of success and happiness. Just like Luciana, I found conversations with these women superficial and daft. I can also relate to Luciana’s advocacy for her grandmother’s health autonomy. She consistently championed for her grandmother’s rights to receive information that will allow her to exercise informed medical decision-making. I also come from a culture that infantilizes sickly elderly relatives, the adult children often are the decision-makers, despite the patient still being of sound mind and having the capacity to make decisions.

Overall, I very much enjoyed this warm, lighthearted and very relevant

This was a great book! I very much enjoyed it and I look forward to reading the author’s next work! Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.

Set in 2017 a mother and daughter from Florida drive north to escape hurricane Irma, but the grandmother Abue refuses to leave with them. The story is told through phone conversations between Luciana, a high school senior, and her older sister Mari, who is away at college. This format was very confusing to get into the story and I had to read the beginning a couple of times to understand the style. I was recommended to read this because it was presented as a sister story, but I just did not connect with these characters and struggled with the coarse language and all the teenage angst. Thank you to NetGalley and Hogarth for an early e-copy. Oye is available for sale on May 14.

I had a hard time reading Oye - I liked the story and characters, but the way it is written was challenging for me - I could see others liking it though. It's mostly written as a one sided conversation. Luciana is a teenager living with her mother and her older sister Mari is away at college, so when her grandmother falls ill, the stress falls on Luciana, and she talks to her sister about it, or guilt trips her for being away. Most of the time you could follow the story even though you only heard one side, but it took a while to get a groove. Lucie's Colombian grandmother and mother are hilarious characters, and learning about Abue's history of growing up was the highlight of the book.

Oye
Author: Melissa Mogollon
Source: NetGalley
Pub. Date: May 14, 2024

Oye is an unusual book with an unusual premise and format. It’s a running family conversation by phone around a Hispanic grandmother who is ill and thinks she is dying but wants her hair dyed because she doesn’t want anyone to see her gray roots, to siblings arguing over everything, to parents arguing with siblings and everyone feeling that they are at the bottom of the family hierarchy. I think my run-on sentence sums up the unique way that Ms. Mogollon has written this book. The book was interesting, and being from Florida, I probably have met a family like this. But it wasn't easy to keep track of characters (except Abue), even though I would lose track while reading. #Oye #randomhouse #hispanic #florida #family #heirarchy #arguments #health #love #infighting #phonecalls #feisty

I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. Thank you to the publisher, Netgalley, and the author for the opportunity to read this novel. Pub. Date: May 2024.

#book #books #bookaddict #booksofinstagram #bookstagram #bookstagramer

This was not my style. While I could appreciate it, and I thought the concept was really cool, it was hard for me to follow. I think others would enjoy it if they can get behind the type of writing.

Oye is a captivating debut novel from Melissa Mogollon. Told almost exclusively through phone calls with her sister Mari, Luciana, the youngest member of her lively Colombian American family, suddenly finds herself taking on the role of caregiver and confidante with her grandmother, Abue. It's fall of 2017 and Hurricane Irma is bearing down on Florida. Luciana's family is evacuating north from Miami, reluctantly leaving behind Abue, who refuses to leave. Struggling to also be the unexpected voice of reason, Luciana has to figure out how to navigate her family's eccentricities, long-hidden secrets, and her own coming-of-age journey. As the threat of the hurricane fades, Abue faces a serious medical diagnosis, changing their own trajectory in unforeseen ways.

Mogollon brings a strong voice in seventeen-year-old Luciana, and through her recounting of events and conversations to Mari, we get a startlingly complete picture of everyone in her life, most especially their mother, Elena, and grandmother, Emilia — whom they call Abue (short for abuela). There's style, yes — as it's all dialogue — but mostly this is absolutely overflowing with stellar characterization and gorgeous writing. This one is for the grandmothers in our lives. If you've had the benefit, as I have, of being close to one of your grandmothers, then it'll most definitely speak to you. Oye is a fantastic, heartfelt and hilarious wonderment of tenderness, joy, and love.