The Distant Marvels

The Distant Marvels (2014), a work of historical fiction by Chantel Acevedo, follows a woman who tells stories to save lives; her talent for storytelling keeps women strong during a deadly hurricane. Nominated for the 2016 Andrew Carnegie Medal, the book received a generally positive reception from critics and readers. Acevedo is the author of numerous award-winning historical novels for adults and teenagers. She also writes short stories and poetry. An associate professor in the English department at Auburn University, she is the Alumni-Writer-in-Residence.

The Distant Marvels is set in Cuba in 1963. When the book opens, Hurricane Flora, set to be a lethal storm, is making its way towards the coast. Everyone is forced to evacuate the area to avoid fatalities. More than 5,000 people have already died in Haiti because of the hurricane, and it’s picking up speed.

In her early eighties, Maria Sirena has led a vibrant, colorful life. She does not plan to leave her little house by the seaside because she has already made peace with death. If death claims her through the hurricane, so be it. The authorities insist that she leaves; she has no choice but to follow them.



Ofelia, a young soldier, takes care of Maria during the evacuation. She takes Maria and seven other women to safety in the Casa Diego Velazquez. Built in the sixteenth century and formerly the home of Cuba’s first governor, the Casa Diego Velazquez is a museum now. Although Hurricane Flora is terrifying, spending the storm on the top floor of such an illustrious building is an exciting opportunity for these women.

However, when Maria gets to the museum, she is disappointed. It is old and worn, and it is nothing like the regal palace of before. Maria can’t help feeling that this is symbolic of Cuba itself—a once-great nation now reduced to a shadow of its former self. Maria knows the house well because her father used to stay there; she is disappointed by what it looks like now.

Inside the museum, the women are left alone without news about the storm. They worry and tensions run high. Maria, the eldest woman, decides that it is up to her to keep everyone calm. A gifted storyteller, she knows there is no better way to pass the time than with a great story.



Gathering the women around her, Maria asks them to introduce themselves. They each reveal small details about themselves, and the atmosphere improves instantly. The women wonder how Maria can be so calm. She admits she doesn’t have much longer to live; she has terminal cancer.

Meanwhile, the storm bears down on Cuba. The water levels are rising, threatening the museum. Having no idea how long they will be trapped, the women agree to ration their supplies. Their greatest fear is that there will be nothing left of the island even if they survive the storm. In Maria’s stories, they find a distraction.

Maria’s mother was Spanish and her father fought for Cuba’s independence. A child of rebellion, Maria vividly recalls the Cuban War of Independence. Her father left them to fight for more than a decade. When he returned, he was not the same man. He left them again. Her mother never recovered from the trials that he put them through. By the time Maria was a teenager, she had already slaved in concentration camps and spent time in hiding. She was forced to grow up very young.



Maria despairs when she remembers her mother, who was a vulnerable, needy woman. Easily distracted by men who were kind to her, she had her heart broken again. Maria, still a young girl, could only watch in frustration as life passed her by. Unsurprisingly, she became pregnant at seventeen.

Maria gave birth to a son, but she lost him during the war years. Having no way of knowing what happened to him, she has accepted that she will never see him again. The man she really misses is her son’s father because, like her mother, she is a romantic at heart. The other women understand this plight.

Maria is not the only woman with secrets in the museum. Many of the women care more about their freedom than surviving, because they have spent enough years in captivity of some form or other. When the storm finally relents and they are released from the museum, the women experience a catharsis. They have shared personal stories with each other, freeing themselves of burdens that have haunted them for years. When Maria returns home, she is at peace with her life, knowing she will never be a captive again.