Growing up I’ve always been exposed to stories or movies of great battles and heroism, and I thought those who fought in wars were so cool to the point I wanted to become an Air Force General when I grew up (that is not the case now). Along with video games where death doesn’t really mean much, the effects of war beyond those fighting in it were never apparent to me. Reading about the experiences that Natalia goes through in the book and seeing her life change due to the war gives me a perspective I have never felt deeply until now.
Reading the book from the eyes of a woman in 1930s Spain along with others from this class, I began to realize the circumstances that women had to endure in this period. There were many instances where Natalia seemed powerless such as her situation with Quimet and one of the few times she seemed to be in control was when she destroyed the doves. Even toward later in the book when she is about to end the suffering of her children, her decision is stifled (for the good).
I felt like the irritation the stirred in me from Natalia’s interactions with her husband in the beginning of the book allows the reader to further sympathize with her position as a wife and mother during the war. The feeling of annoyance soon turned to sympathy and sadness as the book progressed, and I as the reader was able to connect better to her as a human being. This differs from many mediums I have read and the personal connection I felt while reading this book is built from the less depressing but humanizing beginning.
Another thing I really appreciated in this novel was the writing- it seemed a lot more sporadic and sometimes certain sentences would start randomly, or other sentences would be repeated again and again. These authorial choices really shaped the narration of the story to be a lot more insightful into the type of character Natalia was. Overall, this book was really able to connect to me and I think it is one of my favorites of this course so far. I give it a stellar 4.5/5
For this week’s question, why do you think this book has two different titles? (Diamond Square or La Plaza del Diamante vs The Time of the Doves or Pigeon Girl)
“I felt like the irritation the stirred in me from Natalia’s interactions with her husband in the beginning of the book allows the reader to further sympathize with her position as a wife and mother during the war.” It would have also been interesting to compare this beginning of the novel with the end, after the war. We would like to know your ideas about the changes that Natalia experienced and the possible beginning of her happiness.
“the writing- it seemed a lot more sporadic and sometimes certain sentences would start randomly, or other sentences would be repeated again and again”
Can you give examples of this?
“why do you think this book has two different titles? (Diamond Square or La Plaza del Diamante vs The Time of the Doves or Pigeon Girl)”
Well, it has only one title in Catalan: La plaça del diamant. (La plaza del diamante is Spanish.) And it has been translated into English three times, with three different titles: The Time of the Doves, The Pigeon Girl, and In Diamond Square. What do *you* think are the implications of these different translation choices?
I completely agree with the pleasant writing style of the novel. I actually thoroughly enjoyed it. I appreciate your comments regarding her lack of control and then desire to gain it back. Personally, I think I perceived the moment where she considers killing her children as her losing her last bit of self control and patience driven by all the events and emotions bottled up.
I also thought that the writing style was unique at some points. I noticed many run-on sentences with the word “and” repeatedly used to describe multiple actions happening in succession, like when Natalia is in the Plaza with Juliette and meets Quimet. It kind of added to the chaos of the scene and the feeling of being overwhelmed by lots of things happening at once.
I loved the writing style. I felt it was just a stream of consciousness and it did not worry too much about what was being said. More emphasis on just saying what she thought in that moment. I appreciated how it made me relate to her more.
Hi Jonathan, I think both Diamond and Girl highlight the fact that the book is written from a woman’s point of view and may hope to enlighten women.