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4.31 AVERAGE
4.31 AVERAGE
This book is easily a strong contender to be one of my favourites of the year, it is most definitely the best one I've read in 2021 thus far. The Good Immigrant is essentially a collection of 26 essays written by authors of variable backgrounds and upbringings, this simple fact fills the book with so much context. All of the essays are simply brilliant, some are obviously more relatable to me than others, but they all positively affect my perception of people around me. It's incredible to read about how similar some experiences can be while maintaining incomprehensible differences. I think this book is a valuable read for everyone, especially white people and other immigrants. It fills you with much-needed perspectives during these increasingly polarizing times, just be ready for your eyes to get a little misty.
I have a collection of passages from the book that I loved, I'd like to end this review with one of them.
"I realized right then, sitting at the table, that the measure of my success is not the American Dream, but my ability to swim out of the current, parallel to the shore, and trust that the waves would carry me."
I have a collection of passages from the book that I loved, I'd like to end this review with one of them.
"I realized right then, sitting at the table, that the measure of my success is not the American Dream, but my ability to swim out of the current, parallel to the shore, and trust that the waves would carry me."
reflective
medium-paced
This book is a great combination of essays from different writers regarding their personal experiences in the United States. Not every essay resonated with me, but that added to overall beauty of this book; there’s bound to be an essay or two that has a sense of familiarity for someone. I loved many of the essays throughout and really enjoyed reading this.
What a fantastic collection of authors, writers, and journalists.
While I do not wish simply to sound the familiar “progressive talking points,” I cannot help but admire the beauty of the diverse authorship; the deeply moving call for justice, and the implicit condemnation of racist systems, from which I know as a white man I benefit.
I do not know that I have the words, nor the depth of understanding to do this book justice in any review.
It is both critique of a deeply racist system of thought and culture, and yet I found a longing hope within its pages. It is a critique of the systemic racism rotting our country; our world, while maintaining a longing that all will not be this way forever that I hope I have interpreted correctly.
Perhaps not having the words to describe this anthology better is best. Maybe, most likely I cannot and should not try to tell these stories because it is best for me, for those who look like me, those who are privileged like me, and those who think they know so much like me to shut up and listen while others tell their stories.
While I do not wish simply to sound the familiar “progressive talking points,” I cannot help but admire the beauty of the diverse authorship; the deeply moving call for justice, and the implicit condemnation of racist systems, from which I know as a white man I benefit.
I do not know that I have the words, nor the depth of understanding to do this book justice in any review.
It is both critique of a deeply racist system of thought and culture, and yet I found a longing hope within its pages. It is a critique of the systemic racism rotting our country; our world, while maintaining a longing that all will not be this way forever that I hope I have interpreted correctly.
Perhaps not having the words to describe this anthology better is best. Maybe, most likely I cannot and should not try to tell these stories because it is best for me, for those who look like me, those who are privileged like me, and those who think they know so much like me to shut up and listen while others tell their stories.
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Skimmed some of the essays, skipped some other essays, read the ones that hooked me and really touched by a few. It was a mix of personal stories and political takes on immigration. I guess I enjoyed both or neither. The personal stories sometimes felt too short, other felt too long. The political takes sometimes felt too personal, other times felt too academic.
The title is good immigrants. I felt some of the essays tried too hard and other ones just don't really care about that theme.
I gave it three stars because of the reasons above. It is an essay collection of artists and writers. So it is understandable that not everyone writes like Virginia Woolf.
The title is good immigrants. I felt some of the essays tried too hard and other ones just don't really care about that theme.
I gave it three stars because of the reasons above. It is an essay collection of artists and writers. So it is understandable that not everyone writes like Virginia Woolf.
Totally not on the book; I was just going through reading fatigue, and I cannot pick it back up at this point.
Incredibly rich and informative series of essays that also offer you fresh insights to consider and visualize. I learned a lot and loved this collection.
It is a groundbreaking nonfiction series by 26 authors that speak about their perceptions and what it meant for them to have resided in the United States, not to be a native citizen. Each essay by the authors was superb, distressing, and informative. I've learned a lot from this collection and I encourage native American born readers to pick this book up.
It is a groundbreaking nonfiction series by 26 authors that speak about their perceptions and what it meant for them to have resided in the United States, not to be a native citizen. Each essay by the authors was superb, distressing, and informative. I've learned a lot from this collection and I encourage native American born readers to pick this book up.
Rather depressing, but I appreciated reading from the perspective of each writer. Some of my favorite essays included: how not to be; on the blackness of the panther; tour diary; the naked man; no es suficiente, Skittles.
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced