Bitter Grounds

Author Sandra Benitez wraps readers up tightly in the tale of a poor family and a rich family tied to El Salvador's coffee plantations, but don't get too cozy: the terrors imposed by gov't forces as well as the guerrilla soldiers lurks somewhere on the pages ahead. The story follows pairs of mothers and daughters caught between passion and politics. The author grew up in the 50s in El Salvador and was a witness to the heartbreak of illiterate women who left villages and families behind to find work in the capital. Then, in the 70s, as friends and family became targets of the growing revolution, she experienced firsthand the repercussions of oppression. This is a powerful book, one that will stay with readers long after they've turned the last page and turned off the reading lamp.

I really like the way Sandra Benitez writes. It is the first of her books I read and was nice to see the combination of reality and fiction. A fiction novel based on a reality that darkened the beautiful country of El Salvador.

I am always looking for hispanic women authors, and sometimes I am disappointed by their stories, but this was definately NOT the case with "Bitter Grounds". I was so haunted by certain parts of the book that I kept re-reading certain sections to savor the words and the sorrow of the characters.The rich and the poor intermingle and learn from each other the value of riches that are in the heart. Wonderfully written.

As a big fan of Sandra Benitez's A Place Where the Sea Remembers I eagerly looked forward to reading Bitter Grounds. What I found was a very different book although equally as satisfying and enlightening. As in A Place Where the Sea Remembers Sandra's intoxicating lyrical style leaves an indelible mark on you as you read Bitter Grounds. But in this story I felt myself being pulled much deeper into the lives of the families whose existence is inextricably connected to El Salvador's politics and coffee trade. Moving quickly, the story covers many miles, tragedies and celebrations and suddenly you're at the end-not quite ready to leave, and never able to forget the rich stories within the story. A wonderful journey and well worth the read!

Having been born in El Salvador in the same year as Bitter Grounds' last two heroines, I can say that this book is a rarety: one which combines truth and fiction and lays bare the soul of a people caught in tragedy and turmoil. I was mesmerized by the details of life the author chronicled concerning day to day life in San Salvador and Santa Ana, by the intimate details which revealed so much about the two worlds which exist side by side in this tiny, bustling country. Coming from a family in which my father was a self made man, ultimately the highest ranking diplomat from El Salvador and in which my mother was part of the landed aristocracy of Santa Ana, I was amazed at how Ms. Benitez was able to weave so many weighty subjects into her story and yet emerge with a fable for the ages. Had I remained in El Salvador, I wonder on which side of the fence I would have landed: Maria Mercedes' or Flor's. My father's humble beginnings pulled me one way, my mother's the other. Growing up eventually in the U. S. made that choice unnecessary, but still my roots pull at me, and this book has unlocked memories I didn't even know I had.I thank Ms. Benitez for enriching my world with her novel of times that were, times that could have been, times of unrivaled tragedy and sadness. It is the story of El Salvador.