- Hardcover: 224 pages
- Publisher: Hyperion (Feb 16 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 078686589X
- ISBN-13: 978-0786865895
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 14.2 x 2.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 386 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,626,636 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
For many of the immigrant writers in this revealing anthology, the fusion of "old country" customs, habits and lifestyles with those of the "new country" is fueled by pride and shame, determination and denial. Yet for others, the transition is made with relative ease. As a whole, this compelling collection illustrates that the speed of acclimation depends upon factors ranging from the writer's presuppositions to the time and location of her arrival in America. In an untitled essay, Lillianet Brintraup relates the uncomfortable experience of arriving from Chile to join a Ph.D. program at the University of Michigan, where the hectic pace and long work hours made her long for home. In "Secret Latina at Large," Veronica Chambers reflects on her first trip, at age 27, to her native Panama where she reveled in that country's similarities to her home in Brooklyn, as well as in its differences. Edwidge Danticat's "AHA!: Reflections On" is a sad reminder of America's prejudicial attitudes toward African-Haitian-Americans. Editor Danquah (Willow Weep for Me: A Black Woman's Journey Through Depression) has gathered writers from Japan, China, Burundi, Ireland and a host of other countries who testify to the influence of American television, the politics involved in choosing a language and the effects of climate, fast food and dress on the assimilation process. Providing insights into the variety of immigrant experiences, they dispel the belief that "in order to move toward something, one must move away from something else."
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
These essays by 23 women tell the story of finding one's place and one's self after immigrating to the United States. The diversity of their homelands--Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Europe--make each story unique. Some of the essays come from writers already well known in the United States, such as Judith Ortiz Cofer and Edwidge Danticat. All are well-written, thoughtful, amusing, poignant, and compelling. Most of the essayists come from middle-class and privileged backgrounds; for them, immigration often meant following a parent or spouse hired at a university or corporation. Or, they themselves came to pursue graduate degrees or high-level job opportunities. Although they may not speak for poor immigrants pursuing a better life, their stories still show that fitting into a new culture can be difficult and frustrating. Recommended for all public libraries.
-Kitty Chen Dean, Nassau Community Coll., Garden City, NY
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
-Kitty Chen Dean, Nassau Community Coll., Garden City, NY
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Beautifully Written,
By Marvin r (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Becoming American (Cloth) Essays By First Generation Immigrant Women (Hardcover)
I never would have imagined the plight of the imigrant woman had it not been for this book.Nina's story, among other women were compelling.I would strongly recommend this book it is not only informative, but also emotionally engaging, and gives a good discription on the issues immigrant women face with here in the United States, mainly discrimination.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Heart-touching first generation immigrant women,
By Giselle García (Santa Monica, CA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Becoming American (Cloth) Essays By First Generation Immigrant Women (Hardcover)
This book tought me the strenght of each of the women that immigrated to the United States for a better future. It is interesting to learn that these women had a new start, which meant that they would have to adapt to this new country facing many obstacles. One is given the personal experiences from women around the world.
5.0 out of 5 stars
When do we know we're American?,
By
This review is from: Becoming American (Cloth) Essays By First Generation Immigrant Women (Hardcover)
At first I was a bit put off by how everywoman sounded as if she were whining at the loss of something she'd never had, as if her coming to America was by default(most had arrived as children), rather than a delirious desire, as it had been for me in my 20s. Still, I read on, fascinated by each woman's unique story - until I hit the motherlode in their essays where they began to spin their broken straws into the golden fiber of their new lives.Curious & remarkable what women from the East & from Africa thought important & what women from the Old World thought vital to their welfare. Some women ached in exactly the same way I had - wanting so much to be the daughter of which our mothers would have been proud. Do not look for patriotism in these pages - that sort of thing doesn't matter to women nearly as much as which identity we will be expected to wear in which place in our lives: our families' homes & churches; our schools & our parents' relatives from the Old Country. Becoming American is an absorbing, serious tea party where 24 women who started in every corner of the world have come to adulthood in America &, under Meri Nana-Ama Danquah's able editorship, have shared their stories. What of our past must we relinquish & what of America need we assimilate? Well worth the read! Made me do a lot of thinking, & writing too!
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