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Title details for Eyes Open by Lyn Miller-Lachmann - Available

Eyes Open

by Lyn Miller-Lachmann
Soneela Nankani
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
Portugal, 1967. Sónia thinks she knows what her future holds. She'll become a poet, and together she and her artist boyfriend, Zé Miguel, will rise above the government restrictions that shape their lives. The restrictions on what Sónia can do and where she can go without a man's permission. The restrictions on what music she can enjoy, what books she can read, what questions she can ask.
But when Zé Miguel is arrested for anti-government activities and Sónia's family's restaurant is shut down, Sónia's plans are upended. No longer part of the comfortable middle class, she's forced to leave school and take a low-paying, grueling, dangerous job. She thought she understood the dark sides of her world, but now she sees suffering she never imagined.
Without the protection of her boyfriend or her family, can Sónia find a way to fight for justice?

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    May 7, 2024

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9798855550757
      • File size: 126227 KB
      • Duration: 04:22:58

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      February 26, 2024
      Budding poet Sónia Dias chafes against the confines of her rigid Catholic schooling and patriarchal family in this hard-hitting historical verse novel by Miller-Lachmann (Torch), set in 1967 Lisbon during the authoritarian dictatorship in Portugal. Though taught by the nuns that “obedience = eternal salvation” and that they must follow President António de Oliveira Salazar’s rule, 15-year-old Sónia embraces her own “Free Will” and clings to her dissident artist boyfriend Zé Miguel, despite objections from her strong-willed father. Tensions escalate and the dire consequences of rebellion materialize when the secret police arrest Zé Miguel and then someone reports that a banned political singer performed at Sónia’s family’s restaurant, causing them to lose the business and their home. When Sónia defies her father and visits Zé Miguel in prison, her father forces her to leave school to work in a hotel laundry, a dangerous, oppressive workplace (“I scream in pain, but no one hears me/ over the blank and din of machines”). Employing tightly bound poems, Miller-Lachman weaves the perils of authoritarianism into the dynamics between Sónia and her family, and highlights Sónia’s activist awakening and the power of
      protest. Ages 14–up.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Golden Voice Narrator Soneela Nankani performs the story of Snia, a teenage poet who is living in Portugal during the 1960s. The dictatorial government there at that time upends Snia's life. The rebel of her family, she and her now imprisoned boyfriend are blamed for her family's downfall. To survive, Snia clashes with both the dictatorship and the demands of her family. With Nankani's extensive experience, it's no surprise that she provides a profound aural experience as she draws listeners into Snia's world. Through her expressive performance, she captures the varied people the teenager encounters throughout Snia's harrowing experiences. A.L.S.M. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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