Cuba 15

Isabella

Its okay cassidy

Catherine

Lays there un moving on the ground.

Lalaa

I havent even read the sample of it yet so i dont know why im reviewing it. I just likr doung this: lalallaalalslalallhaaabhshtheeteeheeteeheeteeheteeheteeheeteelalaaaaaalhahaaaaaeeheetehet

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Great book anytime, espically ifyou do Battle of the Books

I think this is a great book so far and it makes great questions for battle of the books for stundents who are interested.

Cuba 15

This book was great

Relatable

I loved this book. I am a 14 year-old cuban girl and this was a interesting and relatable book for me. I loved it!

A must read!

Cuba 15 is a book by Nancy Osa, published by Delacorte Press about a girl named Violet Paz, who considers herself an "all American girl", but in an effort to make her Cuban grandmother happy, she decides to throw a traditional quinceañero, or a "becoming of age" party. Violet is half Polish, and half Cuban, but she feels 100% American at heart. Violet knows that not going through with the quinceañero is not an option, so she decides it's best to embrace her Cuban heritage and go along with it. Even though the thought of her standing up in front of everyone in a pink frilly dress makes her sick. She decided that if she is being forced to throw this party, she might as well make it something that she can enjoy. So Violet tries her best to take party planning into her own hands. "'You may choose to embrace all of the elements of the quinceañero, or you may choose to flush traditions in the toilet and rewrite the ceremony for [it] to fit your personality.' It was good to see this in writing, and it turned out, the church service was optional." (Osa 50) Cuba 15 does start off a little slow, but you get sucked in by her family's crazy antics. This story is funny and amusing the whole way through, and it will definitely keep you entertained. The stories of her crazy family are really what keep you reading more. Violet uses her family as inspiration to write an original comedy skit for her speech team. A normal family cookout at the Paz's house can turn very interesting in just a matter of minutes. "A siren down the street mingled with blazing conga drums from the stereo as we returned to the backyard, to the sight of-flames on the grill. The roast was on fire." (Osa 99) I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for an entertaining book. Not only does this book keep a person interested, but it helps you understand the relationship between Cuba and the United States, "Was a place sin problemas. Was our place. Pero, this Coo-ba is gone. Muerta." (Osa 31) Cuba 15 is a really good book, and I highly recommend it to anyone.

Cuba 15 - Spanish Booke Review

I read Cuba 15 by Nancy Osa. The book was published in 2005 in March of 2005.
The book revolves around the idea of an age turning sophomore, Violet Paz is celebrating her 15th birthday, a big deal in the Spanish world. Due to her grandmother's wishes she will be having the traditional quinceañera that any Cuban girl dreams of, but not in Violet's case!
Due to her ethnicity being half Cuban and half Polish, and her have growing up in the United States makes it difficult for her to understand the tradition and culture behind it, bringing out a very upsetting time in her house to have to talk about the past in Cuba.
I wasn't the biggest fan of this book, but I didn't hate it. I liked Violet's friends, I felt they added a humorous touch to a more serious book. I don't really like serious or funny books, I'm more into mysterious books.
While reading this book, I learned that you need to form your own opinions and beliefs and not go along with other peoples thoughts because they are them and you are yourself, with your own mind.
I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone, I didn't enjoy it enough to tell other people to read it because that would be torturous.

Review.

Cuba 15 by Nancy Osa, Published by Delacorte Press in New York March 2005. This book is about a Hispanic girl that just turned 15 so everybody is arranging for her quincenera. But she really doesn't want one, and doesn't want to follow any of the traditions they have for it, because she is also half polish and thinks of her self as 100% American. So her Hispanic grandparents and also her mother are making her have one. The main character is a 15-year-old girl named Violet, and she isn't excited for her quincenera at all, because she doesn't want to wear a big pink dress and be the center of attention. This book is about a 15 year old girl named Violet, and her whole family and friends want to throw her a quincenera but she doesn't want to follow any of the traditions because she thinks their stupid. So they have to come up with some sort of an agreement on it. I didn't like the book because it was about a girl that didn't really want to have a quincenera, if it were me I would love to have one, but I'm not Spanish. She doesn't want to follow any of the traditions of it, so what's the point of having a quincenera if your not going to follow any of the rules for it, I mean you don't have to do the traditions but that's what makes it fun and more real. "The book says you don't have to follow traditions to the letter. You can go with whatever's right for you..so we don't have to do anything we don't want to."(pg.53) I learned more about a girls quincenera and what some of the traditions were, like you have to wear a big fluffy dress and you basically have the spot light all night and there are activities and dances you do at them also and it seems really fun. I wish I could have one, but I'm not Hispanic so I can't have one and if I did it wouldn't be right anyways. I would and I wouldn't recommend this book, it depends on what you're looking for. I mean if you want to learn a little bit about a girls quincenera and her opinions on it, then I would 100 percent recommend this too you. But if you're a boy then I doubt you would want to read this, but most girls would probably like it. If your Hispanic and is turning 15 soon, then you should definitely read this and see what her experience was like during this.

I Loved Cuba 15-Great Book for Women at Any Age!!!

Cuba 15 is by far one of the best books i've ever read! Written by Nancy Osa, this coming of age novel had fun, clever character that every girl can relate to. The main character, Violet Paz, was so humorous, with her quirky remarks and non-stop personality. The book follws Violet in her journey of planning her quinceanero, or fifteenth birthday; a very important day in Cuban culture. Throughtout the novel, she faces problems with friends, her love life, and most importantly the never ending mystery behind her Cuban heritage. There is one particular part of the book that really stuck with me. In Chapter 24, there is one part about a Halloween party that Violet and all her classmates from her high school attend. On page 176 it says, "Leda had climbed onto the lap of one of the Bullsmen and slung an arm around his shoulders...When the Bull finally tugged his mask off, I stared grimly. It was Clarence." Clarence is Violet's love interst in the story, and Leda is her best friend. The reason this part struck me was because I felt that every girl at some point can relate to this type of situation. Violet thought that Leda was flirting with Clarence so of course she freaked out. I think that everyone, male or female, at one time thinks that the person they like, likes someone else and at the time it seems like a huge deal. That's why that partiuclar part made me laugh because I could truly relate to it. Overall, I really enjoyed Cuba 15. It was a quick, fun read and it was the hardest i've laughed over a book in a long time. This book reminded me how lucky I am to have such a big family, and how fortunate I am that my family is so close. I would reccomned this book very highly to women of any age!

Cuba 15

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! I'm actually surprised by how i fast i read this! I think it has to do with the fact that i really liked it :)


Violet Paz is a sophomore in High School who has just turned 15 years old. Her family is half Polish and half Cuban, yet she feels in between because she doesn't know much about her family roots, especially her Cuban side. When her Abuela (Grandmother) brings up the subject of a Quinceañero, Violet immediately objects to this nonsense. Who in there right mind would want to wear a puffy dress the color of petmol bistmol? Let alone, get in front of a crowd of people and proclaim your womanhood?


These are the types of questions and thoughts that linger through Violet's head as her family insist that she have a Quince Fiesta. In case you don't know, a Quinceañero is a traditional coming of age party for Latina girls when they turn 15. A bit similar to a Sweet 16 party. While reading this book i remembered when i turned 15, it really was a special moment for me! I didn't have a Quince fiesta though- i didn't want one. Nancy Osa did such a great job capturing that feeling of when a girl is in that part of her life where she comes to terms with becoming a Señorita (Young Lady)


There is also a Sub-Plot in this story that ties in PERFECTLY with the plot of Violet, planning her Quince with her family and two best friends. In school, Violet is invited to join the Speech Team with her two best friends by one of their teacher's. Violet is placed in the Original Comedy section of the team and to her surprise, she finds inspiration for her original piece from her family.Through this assignment, Violet finds herself seeking answers about her Cuban heritage. She even reaches the point where boundaries end up being crossed which results in a heartfelt climax with her family.


I believe that a lot of girls would find this book to be an interesting read! It's funny, life like, and touching! Girls who are planning on having a Quince Fiesta will definitely enjoy this story! Grab this book Señoritas! :)

Cuba 15 by Nancy Osa review.

Cuba 15 is a novel by Nancy Osa it is about a girl named Violet with two best friends named Leda and Janell, and a crazy family! In the story Violet will deal with her abuela, abuelo, father, mother, and her younger brother. Violet's mother is polish and her father, abuelo and abuela are cuban. Violet's Abuela or grandmother will convince violet to have a quinceanero(quince) or a special fifteenth birthday party which is a big deal in Spanish culture it symbolizes becoming a woman but Violet doesn't know if she is ready for such "responsabilidad" as her family says. Her abuela. While planning her quince Violet is also looking for love, and she just might find it when she joins her school speech team with her two best friends. Although this is all going on, Violet is not to busy to become interested in her Cuban culture, by researching Cuba and learning a little more than her very stubborn father wishes for her.
I did not like the the book Cuba 15 because of little details that confused me where i did not need to be confused at all, and had no real contribution to the story, such as when Violet says,"Vera Campbell, a junior who sometimes sold the school newspaper(Osa 110)." To me that does not paint a picture, it just makes me wonder, who sells the newspaper the other times? Or why does Vera only "sometimes" sell the newspaper? I much would have rather just kept reading and not have to stop and wonder.
I did not like how the author Nancy Osa never left me ending a chapter wondering what's going to happen next because for me that's half the fun! For example she ends a chapter with,"My cast of quince characters, both on and off the stage , was seemingly under control, and i had a headless date for Halloween. Wonders would never cease(Osa 162)." The first thing that i don't like about this quote is I do not understand what she means by having a headless date for Halloween and even after reading the whole book i don't understand. The second thing I don't like about this is that it does not want to make me read on to chapter 23 at all. Maybe if Osa had ended her chapters with more edgy or intense statements or questions i would have been more enthused about this book.
Something I did like about this book is that it helped me review my spanish. Her family would talk back in forth in some simple spanish sentences and words. It made me feel proud when I could understand what they were saying. For example,"En esta casa, no hablamos de estas cosas(Osa 213)." When i read this I understood that it ment in this house we do not talk of these things. There are many, many pages with spanish to help review.
I learned a lot from this book, I learned all about how important a quince is to the Cuban culture and all Spanish cultures at that. I also learned knew words in Spanish when i saw a conversation in Spanish that i didn't know how to translate, i looked it up and now i have a larger vocabulary. I also ever knew that there was a such thing s a speech team and i think it sounds very interesting, maybe my school should have one.
I know the questions running through your mind! Will Violet finding to much about Cuba ruin her now beloved quince? Will Violet perform well enough at the speech competition to move on to the next tourney? Will the boy violet thought was the one actually like her best friend? And most importantly will Violet's relationships with her famil

Cuba 15 Review

I read the book Cuba 15 by Nancy Osa. This book is published by Delacorte Press in New York. The copyright date is 2008. Cuba 15 is bout a 15 year old girl, named Violeta, with Cuban heritage. Throughout the whole novel Violeta tries to discover more and more about her family's past. But whenever she brings it up, she never gets the answer she wants. Violeta's family doesn't like to talk about their life back in Cuba.
Since Violeta is 15, it is Cuban tradition to have a quinceanero. A quinceanero is when a 15 year old girl changes from a girl to a woman. Violeta doesn't like the idea of, "having to stand up in front of everyone you know, in a ruffly dress the color of Pepto Bismol, and proclaim your womanhood." (Osa 1). But as the book progresses she warms up to the subject. Throughout all of this chaos Violeta is also in the middle of a speech competition. Violeta goes with the flow when in comes to school. So when she was asked to join the speech team, she couldn't decline the offer. Violeta's life is pretty hectic. And between all of these events she has to listen to her family bicker about her quince.
At the beginning of Osa's work it was a struggle to become hooked. But as the novel advanced I became more interested. In order to read this book, you have to enjoy reading for fun, because the book tends to get boring. So I guess you could say I liked the book, not a lot, but I did find interest in it. I sort of liked it, because I liked the descriptions Nancy Osa used to describe certain incidents. What I got from this book, was what a 15 year old girl goes through to have a quinceanero, and what a quince was. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn about a quinceanero, or anyone who finds interest in Cuban heritage.

Cuba 15

Violet Paz has just turned 15; the age when a girl enters womanhood and celebrates the occasion with a traditional quinceanera party. This is of great importance to Violets Cuban grandmother. She longs for Violet to have this experience, but Violet realizes she knows little about her half-Cuban, half-Polish heritage; and more importantly nothing about quinces. ¿Since my dear grandmother has offered to throw me a quince party, I have gratefully accepted the idea¿ (pg 48). As Violet helps her mom plan for the party she begins to understand its meaning, and how important this event is to her family. Meanwhile at school Violet decides to use her family¿s loud personality to write a comedy act for her speech teams Comedy Competition. As preparation for the party begins Violet becomes anxious to learn more about her roots. She goes to her father for help since he was born in Cuba and brought to the U.S. as a baby, but he refuses to discuss his culture. The mentioning of Cuba in her family brings her grandmother sadness, and her father anger. ¿How am I supposed to learn anything about Cuba if you won¿t even let me try?¿ Dad¿s face was full of fire. ¿This is precisely what I am trying to save you from, little girl¿ (pg 250)! Instead Violet contacts her Aunt Luz for support; she sends Violet books on quinces, and CD¿s of Cuban music to get started. She learns that a quince girl is supposed to have responsibility, and to Violet that means understanding her Cuban heritage and culture. Violet becomes more and more involved in her speech competition and decides to have the theme of the party be ¿All the World¿s a Stage¿, which makes her celebration unique and personal.


I would recommend this book to anyone who would enjoy a humorous novel about learning more about your culture, and your family. Throughout the book Violet comes to understand that quinces are about traditions, family, and your own self discovery. This was a well written book about the journey of growing up. She discovers just how important her two best friends are to her as they help when Violet runs into trouble along the way. The book kept my attention; and was very interesting to learn about quince celebrations and Spanish traditions.

Reviewed by Mark Frye, author and reviewer for TeensReadToo.com

Violet Paz gives little thought to her ethnicity. She's half-Cuban and half-Polish, but all American. She takes her father's roots for granted, even if her crazy relatives are always visiting for mega-Domino tournaments and zany cookouts. But when her grandmother and parents insist that she participate in her "quince," she is forced into a reluctant and embarrassed embrace with an "old world" tradition.

This debut novel masterfully and subtly details the modernization of the quinceanero, a coming-of-age party for a Latina's fifteenth birthday, through the eyes of a clever and humorous teen living near Chicago. The author, Nancy Osa, accurately captures the resentment of parental influence some teens experience in their quest for their own identity. As Violet struggles with being forced to participate in her own quince, she seeks advice from other adult figures who help her balance parental expectations with her own need for independence. Osa pulls off this high-wire act masterfully, not going "over the top" in teen rebellion fashion, nor making Violet an unbelievably acquiescent parent-pleaser.

Osa weaves the subplot into the novel quite well, also. It makes Violet's self-discovery a double success story: not only does she make her quince relevant to her modern, American life, but she uses her zany family's exploits as fodder for her speech team event.

CUBA 15 has received considerable attention and been nominated for numerous awards. This is a likeable story from a "new" author I hope we hear from again! Five stars.

Now and Then

Violet Paz is half-Cuban,half-Polish heritage but feels much more american. Violet is an outgoing girl who loves theater and was soon to be 15. Her Cuban grandmother suggested that she should have a big traditional 'Quinceanera,' it would help with Violet learning more of the culture's tradition, family coming together, and finding who she was. but Violet was soon to have her big day with the theater theme and the mixture of her cultures. She knew this day was going to be special to her and her family. She studied hard and wrote about her family in trying to have a much more bigger understandment of them. knowing that her family loves the game of domino, she based that on a sketch, which she perfoms in. Overall she comes across her first boyfriend and stuggles again with friendship between her two best friends, who are very close and valuable to her. Cuba 15 is a great book, because it shows that some people with mixed heritage might feel different. People like Violet consider themsevles different then what they are. How Violet said that she was more american but then again she wants to be able to mix her taraditions, the old and the new.

Cuba 15

The novel Cuba 15 was written by Nancy Osa and published by Delacorte Press. The main character is a soon to be 15 year old girl named Violet, who has a Cuban heritage. Violet likes to keep it low key, so she is not too thrilled when her abuela insists that she have a huge quince for her 15th birthday. A quince is a Cuban celebration that is given to a fifteen year old girl to celebrate her becoming a woman. The book is all about Violet learning more and more about her Cuban heritage and planning one of the biggest celebrations that she will ever have in her life. As the quince is getting closer and closer, Violet starts to get excited for it. She was apprehensive about it at first, but begins to really look forward to it. When Violet lies to her parents and goes against their strong political beliefs to support Fidel Castro, a man who took over Cuba causing many people, including Violets family to leave, Violet gets into some huge trouble. Violet, who has a different opinion and a more open mind than her father, was only trying to learn more about her heritage. Unfortunately her father does not understand and wants to cancel her party. Whether he is able to cancel the party or not, he knows one thing for sure: he is not attending it. Violet is extremely upset because of how much this party means to her, and with her father not being there it would never be the same (if she even still gets to have the party). The rest of the story is about how Violet solves this enormous conflict with her family. At the beginning of the novel, the story was kind of boring, because nothing was really going on and it took me a little while to get into it. Once it started getting closer to the end I started to really enjoy it. It becomes really interesting when the author starts writing about many different events leading up to the quince, and you just have to know how everything turns out. Nancy Osa writes, ¿¿What¿s this?¿ he asked, sliding a blue card out. It read, `No. 147599 THANK YOU ________ FOR YOUR 5/2 TAXDEDUCTABLE $5.OO DONATION, CLERGY FOR CUBA/PEACE WITH CUBA FOUNDATION.¿ My raffle ticket. And beneath it, the leaflets I¿d picked up at the rally. Dark clouds filled Dad¿s eyes as he scanned them¿ (p249). Although the beginning was boring, it was worth reading it to get to the end. I learned so much about quinces and Cuban customs. I also learned about the government in Cuba and about the political arguments and fighting that have been going on for quite some time now. Lastly, the characters in the book spoke Spanish, which actually helped me better understand the language and learn a few new words. I would recommend this book to anybody who would like to learn about a new culture. Not only is it filled with new information, but it is a fun way to learn, unlike those boring movies that put you to sleep. It is an exciting story that once you get into to it, you won¿t want to put it down.

A Party for Her People

¿What can be funny about having to stand up in front of everyone you know, in a ruffly dress the color of Pepto-Bismol, and proclaim your womanhood? Nothing. Nada.¿ The book Cuba 15 is a coming of age story about Violet Paz is a 15 year old 10th grader. This book is written in Violet Paz's 'the main character' point of view, and the setting is in Chicago in present day. Violet wants nothing to do with the quinceañero, although she goes along with the party for her grandmother. In this story of high school ups and downs, friends, romance, and the stress of planning a huge party for everyone she has ever known, will Violet crack under pressure or become the woman her grandmother wants her to be? Violet¿s family loves to play dominoes and have fun together. Violet¿s overbearing abuela 'grandmother' wants Violet to complete her transformation through womanhood with a party called a quinceañero, which in the Cuban culture is a huge deal. ¿The quinceañero, or quince, is a fifteenth-year coming-of-age ceremony traditionally held for girls in Latin American countries.¿ Violet¿s mother is Polish and this makes Violet feel even more confused about her heritage and if she should even go through with her quinceañero. Her baseball obsessed little brother Mark could care less about her quinceañero and wonders why her theme isn¿t baseball. Her aunt Luz is always there for her with her advice. Her two best friends Janell 'an artsy young women' and Leda 'an activist for many causes, and a strict vegetarian' or damas at her side can they help her realize that the party isn¿t such a bad idea? Violet doesn¿t even feel Cuban enough to pull of a party with a dreaded dress, traditionally pink. Cuba to her is a mysterious island that her father refuses to speak about and even mentioning the island makes her grandparents very sad. Along with the stress of a huge party Violet is also on a speech team. She must survive the ¿Ax¿ and hope her comedic story about her crazy Cuban family will impress judges at her tournaments. I thought this book was a decent read with a good story line that always kept you guessing. By reading this book I learned more about quinceañeros and it was enjoyable to read a book with a little Spanish in it. This book also taught me more about Cuba and how immigrants from Cuba were effected by Fidel Castro. The sadness and anger Violet¿s father and grandparents felt about Cuba made the book more interesting. I would recommend this book to someone who is planning a quinceañero or even to anyone who is in high school. This book made me wish I could have had a quinceañero.

Cuba 15

The book Cuba 15 is about a girl named Violet Paz who lives with her crazy Cuban family in Chicago. Although Violet is both Cuban and Polish, she feels 100 percent American. When her Abuela suddenly announces that Violet will be having a 'quince', Violet will do anything to keep it from happening. A 'quince' is a party that is celebrated on a girls fifteenth birthday symbolizing her entering into womanhood. Even though Violet is against this at first eventually she begins to look forward to it, even making her wonder about her Cuban backgrounds. I thought this book was pretty good. I liked it because there were many real life problems that most teenage girls have. For example disagreeing with your family while dealing with school and boyfriends. The reason why I didn't like this book is because at the beginning the book seemed slow paced, but by the end, the book jumped from season to season quickly. I would recommend this book to someone who is either taking Spanish or thinking about taking Spanish. There is much Spanglish in this book making it fun yet cultural. Altogether I think the author, Nancy Osa, did a great job portraying Violet Paz throughout this book, seeing her problems and how she dealt with each of them.

Cuban Girl's Quinceañero

Violet Paz, a 15 year old sophmore in high school is told by her dear abuela 'grandmother' that it is traditional to have a quinceañero for all Latin/Cuban girls at the age of 15 for it is known to be the point at which a girl is to become a woman. Violet wants nothing to do with the party whatsoever and does not have that much of a backround knowledge on her Cuban family history. In her family, the tradition for all the girls having their quinceañero is to wear a frilly pink dress, in which Violet does not like, and to speak in front of everyone at the party about her upcoming womanhood, and too she does not like this either. While going through the ups and downs of highschool drama, she has her two best friends Janell very sweet young woman and into art, and Leda who is said to be an activist and vegetarian. These two help her throughout the plans for her party. Violet's father does not wish to talk or even really think about Cuba at all, her mother is right beside Violet's grandmother helping create the whole party under Violet's theme, her grandfather, who is always having small barbeques and playing dominoes in the backyard, and her little brother, Mark, who thinks nothing but sports and does not really want anything to do with his big sister's party. To help Violet with her speech and fear of speaking to her family at her party, she joins a speach team with her friends, where she enrolls in a form of Comedy. Violet does her act portraying her 'crazy' family's life at home. At the tournaments that she goes through, she hopes to impress the judges and coaches with her act and hoping to be able to overcome her fear. Throughout the period of planning her quinceañero, Violet experiences a series of troubles and romance, but through it all, she learns more about her than she thought she knew and finally can't wait for her party. At 'All The World's A Stage', life changes before Violet Paz's eyes. Cuba 15 was a pretty decent book. I learned more about both Cuban and Latin traditions and how different they are from American or any other. It also helped me understand more about quinceañeros and how much work is needed to be put in time is very much needed.