Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.25 AVERAGE
4.25 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
emotional
sad
slow-paced
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
In this memoir, Wang shares her experiences of being a young undocumented immigrant child in America. Wang moves from China to NY and talks about her experiences from age 7 to 6th grade. Learning new language, customs, navigating school and a hard and hungry home life were big changes for Wang and many other immigrants. TV and books became her first friends and I think that rings true for many immigrant kids. I learned to speak English from watching Sesame Street myself! I think living in the shadows and the fear of being found out by authorities is clearly described through Wang's experiences and it made me think of all the children who don't have a say in coming to America but have to live with the consequences of their parents' actions. This was good in audio format as well as in print, recommend either.
"Half a century and a migration across the world later, it would take therapy’s slow and arduous unraveling for me to see that the thread of trauma was woven into every fiber of my family, my childhood."
Parts of her memoir really resonated with me as I also came to the US around the same age (although I was never undocumented) and had similar experiences of being completely uprooted from everything I knew. What could have elevated this to a 5-star read for me is more introspection or reflectiveness beyond just telling the story of her childhood. A humbling read nonetheless.
Parts of her memoir really resonated with me as I also came to the US around the same age (although I was never undocumented) and had similar experiences of being completely uprooted from everything I knew. What could have elevated this to a 5-star read for me is more introspection or reflectiveness beyond just telling the story of her childhood. A humbling read nonetheless.
sad
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
This book was so searing and gut-wrenching. It's the kind of book I wish I could put into the hands of every person who thinks illegal immigrants have it easy in this country, and that they're stealing "good" jobs from Americans. I don't see how you can read an account like this and not empathize with what Wang and her family went through, as well as feel uncomfortable about the ugly side of America, a side that seems to be rearing its head more and more often of late. This one will stick with me for a very long time.
3.5 stars. A heartbreaking look at Wang's life from 7yo to middle school. She recounts her hunger and lack of care, verbal and emotional abuse - so much trauma for a child to endure. The audiobook is narrated by the author and it hurt to hear in her own voice how she suffered... but so much of the book focuses on that part of her childhood that the last bit feels rushed. There are lots of gaps in information that I think would help the reader's experience and I wished to hear more about her life beyond where she ends the memoir.
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced