About book American Chica: Two Worlds, One Childhood (2002)
(reposted from my blog)This was a pure and simple impulse read. I happened to be scanning the biography section of the library, saw this book, read the back blurb and took it away with me.American Chica is a wonderful read; Arana was trained as a journalist, and her beautifully detailed descriptions and carefully-chosen similes point out the many ways in which her parents' trans-continental marriage and her privileged upbringing in Peru, then the dramatic change to middle-class surroundings in the United States, have molded her present being. She writes evocatively of being a kind of living bridge, a hybrid child, both Peruvian and American, and yet neither at the same time; how she and her brother were able to claim both sides of their heritage, yet were not fully accepted into Peruvian society and were rejected as "foreigners" by Americans.Though I believe America is continually becoming more tolerant of difference, less concerned with where you came from and more interested in who you are, I can see there are still many biases and prejudices simmering beneath the surface. I see it in the official immigration laws and allowances -- the way, for instance, we allow unlimited numbers of Canadians and northern Europeans to immigrate each year, but impose caps and limits on the number of darker-skinned southern Europeans, Mexicans, and Central and South Americans who may legally cross our borders. I see it in the soft racism of lowered expectations, the understanding that "those people" are somehow less intelligent and should not be held to the same standard as "our people," whatever that might mean. Arana, who grew up in the 1950s and early 1960s, saw these biases in full flower -- she writes of how, during her first trip to the United States, she saw segregated restrooms in St. Louis, labeled "white" and "colored," and how she looked down at her own brown knees and wondered how anyone could ever think of her as white. (Yet she used the "white" restroom because her white mother took it for granted that since she was white, her children would be too. Not everyone Arana met in America felt the same way, though.)There are some decidedly uncomfortable vignettes in this book, including one disturbing scene where a family friend attempts to molest Arana; nearly every story, however, is connected to every other, reflecting and reinforcing the author's belief that everything which happens is for a purpose, and that all things are connected beneath the surface. And Arana's prose is both symbolically rich and resonant in its fine description. I have a hard time understanding those who have complained that the author's life is not noteworthy enough to merit an autobiography; any life, whether noteworthy or obscure, is worth reading about if the details are inherently interesting -- a bonus if they are told with a wealth of the right kind of description and an eye for connection, both of which Arana displays in spades. It's well worth the read, in my opinion.
American Chica is not How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents nor is Marie Arana another Julia Alvarez. More’s the pity. That said, I’m an easy grader and mostly love to read anything that is not macabre, fantasy, or sci-fi. I find biculturalism and bilingualism irresistible topics and personally fascinating b/c of my own bicultural-bilingual experiences. So what in my humble opinion is not to like about American Chica? ¡Nada en absoluto! I flew through the book devouring every detail and was totally blown away by the breadth of Marie Arana’s English vocabulary. ¡Tambien, celosa! I do wonder why Arana was so intrigued w/ her mother’s love/married life. Why did Arana refrain from divulging anything about hers that must have been influenced by what she observed as daughter of her parents, a missing piece of the story w/ no clues offered. And did Marie Arana in the end usurp her mother’s first name? I need to go back to clarify my confusion w/ names and also make a list of English terms to look up in the dictionary. Happily, I understood most all phrases the author included en espanol.
Do You like book American Chica: Two Worlds, One Childhood (2002)?
Entertaining memoir about the author's childhood, her family and her confusion over her bicultural identity. Her mother is an American, descended from the Adams family, and her father from an upper class Peruvian family. Arana spent her early years in Peru before moving to the U.S. The book not only describes her family history, her parents marriage, living in Peru during the political turmoil after World War II, and her immigration to the U.S., but also is filled with anecdotes of her escapades and many colorful people who influenced her.
—Fran
My wife had set this book aside after barely starting it, and out of curiosity, I picked it up. Then I could hardly put it down. You can read a summary elsewhere. Memoirs, autobiographies, and biographies are my favorite types of reading. But when you read a memoir that has all of the elements of a gripping novel--well, that's the best. This story of Marie Arana's childhood is like that. Parts seem so fantastic that they must be fiction or fantasy, but they really were part of her life. Since the writer has not only a great story to tell but a background career as a book critic for the Washington Post and publishing editor, she knew how to produce a spellbinder. This book will appeal to anyone fascinated by intercultural dynamics and, of course, to anyone who likes the books I like!
—Phil
I found this book in the book room at school when I was looking for some non-fiction to read. I'm fascinated by South American (I'd love to travel there someday), so I brought the book home to read. I mostly read American Chica before bed, but it really isn't a before bed kind of book. I think the book got short shrift from me due to this. Plus it got put down for a while when I got into the Twilight series. Still, I found Marie Arana's expriences of growing up in two cultures an interesting read, and I learned a little bit more about South America in the process.
—Jennifer
