The last chapters of Ordinary girls show how Diaz tried to overcome her struggles. Diaz went through a depression because of her own mother. Instead of living in violence she just wanted a real family and home. The outcome is she joined the military and even came out about her sexuality when she was there. When Jaquira was in the military she enjoyed it. (“I had loved boot camp,” she writes. “In the Navy, I’d finally felt like I mattered”),(Diaz, 220). Even though Jaquira felt like she belonged in the military she abandoned it and went back to where everything started. She came back to Miami, she even lived with her parents again. She came back to the violent, abusive, toxic home from the beginning. After reading this memoir I understand the importance of family and how it can have an effect on an individual’s life. It ruins the perspective on love and family.
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Ordinary Girls: Final thoughts and comments
Finishing Ordinary Girls was a bit bittersweet.
I guess even if I told myself I didn’t have any expectations, I was still waiting for a fairytale ending. I thought the book was great, something I would have not picked out from the shelf on my own, but I did enjoy it.
At times, it was hard to read. Not in the way that I couldn’t understand it, but there was so much information to process, a lot was going on in a short amount of time and a lot of touchy subjects.
I have never read a memoir before, so I don’t know if it is typical or just Diaz’s writing style, but I feel like I was reading a diary, but not in the correct order. The subtitles helped to put in context her stories, but the jumping around was confusing at times. The book felt personal, as if she was talking directly to me, which I liked.
As mentioned before, I enjoyed the book. 10/10 would recommend, and I understand why it got so many raving reviews.
