Age Range: Young Adult
The Firefly Letters is a work of fiction based on Fredrika Bremer's three month visit to Cuba in 1851. The story is told from three different points of view. Fredricka is an upper class woman visiting from Sweden. Elena is an upper class Cuban girl, whose family Fredricka stays with during her visit to Cuba. Cecilia is a Cuban slave that works for Elena's family. Despite the different worlds that these three women come from, they still manage to find a way to become friends with each other. Fredricka enjoys sketching the Cuban country side and visiting with all of the local people there. She constantly draws what she sees so that she can turn the pictures into poems later. Cecilia is pregnant and accompanies Fredricka on her journeys to translate from Spanish to English for her. They become friends and Fredricka worries about Ceclia's baby and her health. Fredricka and Cecilia often free the Cuban fireflies (cocuyos) from animals and children, they are referenced throughout the book. Elena is basically locked in her room and is not allowed out in public often. She works on filling her hope chest with hand sewn clothes and embroidery. Each woman expresses their own view of the slavery that goes on in Cuba and give the reader a glimpse of their daily lives. This was a wonderful book about daily life and slavery in Cuba in the mid 1800's.
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