What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez
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3.9 • 68 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
A powerful novel that's "hilarious, heartbreaking, and ass-kicking" (Jamie Ford) about a Puerto Rican family in Staten Island who discovers their long‑missing sister is potentially alive and cast on a reality TV show, and sets out to bring her home.
Winner of the 2024 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction · Longlisted for the Aspen Words Literary Prize · March Indie Next Pick · Belletrist, Phenomenal, Page & Pairing, and Readers Digest book club pick
The Ramirez women of Staten Island orbit around absence. When thirteen‑year‑old middle child Ruthy disappeared after track practice without a trace, it left the family scarred and scrambling. One night, twelve years later, oldest sister Jessica spots a woman on her TV screen in Catfight, a raunchy reality show. She rushes to tell her younger sister, Nina: This woman's hair is dyed red, and she calls herself Ruby, but the beauty mark under her left eye is instantly recognizable. Could it be Ruthy, after all this time?
The years since Ruthy's disappearance haven't been easy on the Ramirez family. It’s 2008, and their mother, Dolores, still struggles with the loss, Jessica juggles a newborn baby with her hospital job, and Nina, after four successful years at college, has returned home to medical school rejections and is forced to work in the mall folding tiny bedazzled thongs at the lingerie store.
After seeing maybe‑Ruthy on their screen, Jessica and Nina hatch a plan to drive to where the show is filmed in search of their long‑lost sister. When Dolores catches wind of their scheme, she insists on joining, along with her pot-stirring holy roller best friend, Irene. What follows is a family road trip and reckoning that will force the Ramirez women to finally face the past and look toward a future—with or without Ruthy in it.
What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez is a vivid family portrait, in all its shattered reality, exploring the familial bonds between women and cycles of generational violence, colonialism, race, and silence, replete with snark, resentment, tenderness, and, of course, love.
A Most Anticipated Book of 2023 by Elle • USA Today • Today.com • Ms. Magazine • Good Housekeeping • Bustle • The Week • Goodreads • Bookriot • Pop Culturely • SheReads • Litreactor • Electric Lit • The Mary Sue • People Español • Zibby Mag • Debutiful • Her Campus
Best Books of March by Shondaland • Ms. Magazine • Popsugar • Bookriot • Debutiful • Powell’s Book Blog • TIME 100 must-read book of 2023 • Booklist Top 10 debut of 2023
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
We loved this poignant and funny debut novel. Nina and Jessica Ramirez have been living in the shadow of their sister Ruthy’s disappearance for 12 years, trapping them both in a state of limbo. When Ruthy reappears on the exploitative reality show Catfight, the sisters decide to drive straight from Staten Island to Boston, where the show is filmed—and their strong-willed mother, Dolores, insists on joining them. Claire Jiménez imbues the casual banter and incendiary barbs between the Ramirezes with a palpable sense of fondness and pathos. Jiménez also narrates the audiobook, and her melodic voice gives the story an authentic air of tenderness. Touching on issues like racism and violence, What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez is a heartfelt look at the relationship between hope and healing.
Customer Reviews
Creative writing
Honestly, my favorite part of the book was the creative writing from the author. It was witty, the banter was laugh out loud funny, and you got the true ending essence of each character. I kept waiting for a deep story to evolve, but felt it was more about the characters, their heritage & the dynamic of a family enduring an unresolved loss. Worth the read!
Great story!
Glimpse into the lives of a family who suffered an unimaginable loss, their grief and hope and their strength. Told with honesty and humor. I recommend this book 100%.
Disappointed
It had potential