The Silence ✔

Camila is different, and only her ghost friend, Pedro, seems to understand. Not only is she a Puerto Rican in an unfamiliar setting, but she is also deaf, and only her mother and aunt take the time to learn sign language. Camila's disengagement may further also stem from supernatural abilities: she is telepathic. Her powers grow whenever she is upset, and the presence of Pedro seems to quantify the often gory results.

Camila is a child living in the aftermath of World War II in New York City. For a period of roughly thirty years, the narrative traces the ups and downs of her life, and the lives of her family members. At two points in her life, the deaths of matriarchs force cyclical migration to the island of Puerto Rico, and back to New York City. Through Camila and other character viewpoints, the feeling of being an outsider in two worlds (as an American and as a Puerto Rican), is intensified by a family ghost named Pedro. He influences the characters into supposed liberation of self (though ultimately immoral decisions), and to underscore the anxiety of dual-identity experienced by Puerto Ricans. Camila is never sure where her home is, as she feels out of place in New York and in Puerto Rico, even as she struggles to find happiness in either place.