Pages

Sunday, April 30, 2017

The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Students chose this for book club and the snappy dialogue and defined characters make it a well-done interracial romance novel. Set in New York City, Natasha Kingsley, is being deported to Jamaica and trying to find a way to stay in America by contacting the US immigration office. Korean-American, Daniel Bae, is on his way to a college interview for Yale when their paths cross. When the two teenagers meet, the poetic Daniel tries to convince the logical Natasha that love at first sight is possible by asking a series of scientific questions. The author adds historical context that engages the reader whether it is an explanation of why so many Koreans own salons that cater to African Americans, immigration facts, scientific paradoxes, facts, theories, and more. 

Natasha is smart and has a clear view of the world. She won’t be patronized by adults and she’s blunt with people. At the immigration office, an adult tries to tell her the future will work out. “Don’t tell me I’ll be all right. I don’t know that place [Jamaica]. I’ve been here since I was eight years old. I don’t know anyone in Jamaica. I don’t have an accent. I don’t know my family there, not the way you’re supposed to know family. It’s my senior year. What about prom and graduation and my friends?” When Daniel meets Natasha he appreciates her direct, no-nonsense quality. Natasha is so science-driven that she explains the scientific chemicals that are released in the brain when a person falls in love trying to remove all the unexplainable romantic elements. 

Most of the alternating points of view are Natasha and Daniel’s, but there are side characters interspersed to round out the themes of self-identity, culture, love, science, and racism, to name a few. The poetic Daniel describes meeting Natasha and his love-at-first-sight is as follows: “It’s like knowing all the words to a song but still finding them beautiful and surprising”. While Natasha thinks of meeting him as definitely connecting with Daniel, but her practical side sees the moment and distrusts the “poetic heart”. “They’re not talking about the real heart, the one that needs healthy foods and aerobic exercise. But the poetic heart is not to be trusted.” Natasha doesn’t want to fall in love with Daniel.She will be deported in 24 hours. When Daniel saves her life and breaks her pink head phones that she's owned most of her life, it symbolizes her break with the past and all she has known. Her new cultural identity now involves interracial love and living in a new culture. 

While Natasha and Daniel don’t have a problem with their different cultural backgrounds, their family members do. Both struggle with self-identity, while at the same time being self-confident and happy with themselves. They must learn to deal with parental expectations intertwined with different cultures. When Natasha's dad first meets Daniel, his face shows his displeasure. Her dad wants to be an actor but is rejected for roles because of his ethnicity making him insecure and depressed. He misses his home country to the point that he tells a policewomen he is an illegal immigrant. He says that he doesn't know why he did that but it is obvious that he subconsciously wants to return to his home country. 

Similarly, Daniel is dealing with parents who expect him to speak Korean and marry an Asian girl. When Natasha first meets his brother, Charlie, and his dad they make racist comments. The brother brings up the stereotypical African American that shoplifts and the dad tells her to buy some relaxer because her hair is too big. Natasha responds that she likes her big hair and Daniel responds to his brother by giving him the finger. Both Natasha and Daniel are confident with themselves even though life is uncertain; whereas, the parents of both have to deal with disillusionment and unhappiness.  The feelings of alienation for immigrants is captured in the complexity of finding not only self-identity but an American or Korean or Jamaican identity as well.

Another motif explored from Daniel’s point of view is names. Daniel’s mom ponders that America names signify the individual; whereas, Korean names point to the importance of family ancestry. Daniel’s mother “agonized” over what to name her children showing her struggles with cultural identity. She decided on both American and Korean to show them where they’d been and where they were going. Daniel’s brother Charlie, however, with all his intelligence doesn’t understand the power of his past and tries to erase all that is Korean in him. He’s on probation from Harvard college and Daniel reveals that when he is grown-up and has a good job he goes by Charles Bay not his given, Charles Jae Won Bae. He refuses to speak Korean, eat Korean food, or date a Korean. This prevents him from finding true happiness in life because he doesn’t like himself and is rejecting part of his cultural identity. The result is a shallow, alienated, and self-absorbed character who is unable to have a close relationship in marriage or with family members. 

The ending is a bit convenient or forced regarding how the two meet, but it will satisfy the romantic heart. Or should I say, "poetic heart". I particularly like how this author puts words together. The cadence and rhythm of the chapters make it fast-paced and the back-and-forth dialogue between Daniel and Natasha is funny and smart. I did try the audio tape first but sort of lost track of who was speaking. I switched to the book and got more out of it in the end. But since listening is my weakest learning style, I'm biased. A fun, well-written, and enjoyable book. 


Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly

A well-documented book with great information, but the author's tendency to break up stories with subplots was clunky at times and slowed the pacing. The book follows the stories of four African-American women influential in mathematics and engineering while working for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), and later as the women's jobs were transferred to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) after the NACA became defunct. Their battles with segregation and upward mobility were uniquely stymied and enhanced by the organization and individuals they worked for and with at NACA and NASA. A fascinating look in time, the book's pacing is slowed by the shifts from one character to another during action scenes.

The author interviewed some of the women in this book and those quotes add color and strength to the story. I tend to like nonfiction that is more descriptive creating characters I can easily visualize. This author tends to use too many platitudes that make sections wordy and dry with the character descriptions become lost while the pacing slows. The personal story of Katherine (Coleman Goble) Johnson helping her son with his soapbox derby car and being the first black kid to win the national contest is inspirational; however, the author starts with the story then adds a subplot on another character and her sorority before going back to the race. She does this multiple times throughout the book and I found it irritating because it was like hitting the brakes midway while racing down a steep hill. She does it again and again.

The resilience of these women and the facts surrounding their careers are fascinating. The author does a great job showing the historical context of what they had to deal with during the Jim Crow laws and how they fought small battles whether it was in a segregated cafeteria or using a segregated bathroom. The 2017 movie, "Hidden Figures", is excellent and I actually liked the tighter focus and character development better than the book, but the book fills in gaps the movie doesn't explain well. It also condenses sections and I'm glad I read and watched both.

4 Smileys

Saturday, April 8, 2017

Uprooted: The Japanese American Experience During World War II by Albert Marrin

When I finished this I wanted to turn around and reread it again. I really liked author Albert Marrin's turn of phrases and found myself wanting to write them down. I read it on the elliptical machine and writing notes wasn't in my wheels - I'm not that skilled at multi-tasking. The overall message is that racism exists all over the world and that people need to learn from the past or they will repeat it. The framework of the book begins with racist views promoted by the Japanese during World War II in Japan, a bit of China, Germany, and last America. The views in America and the questionable decisions by leaders to incarcerate Japanese Americans without due process during WWII is brought to light. Marrin puts the issues in historical context and shows how the actions by leaders and the justice system as well as the use of media influenced and later changed the public's mind to overturn the unjust laws infringing on civil rights. He points out leaders that had racist views and shows how it mirrored the national or global dialogue at the time. He argues that racism harms countries and the civilians leading to poor decisions and harmful consequences. A well-written and thoughtful book that I highly recommend.

5 Smileys