Scan barcode
A review by heyitsmeg777
Indivisible by Daniel Aleman
5.0
*My Ma tells me I feel too much.*
Yes Mateo, me too. I feel too much and this book?
Got me hooked, got me on edge, made me cry, and made me laugh, cheer, cry some more and I absolutely fell in LOVE with this book. It literally changed my life. Maybe not super HUGE change to my life, but it definitely does change my perspective on stuff like immigration, what it means to be American when your parents are immigrants, and the heavy burden of being an older sibling all while being sensitive and someone who feels too much.
I saw so much of myself in Mateo (older sibling, spanish-speaking, questioning what it means to be American, Hamilton fan, fear of cockroaches (EEK) etc.) The list could go on, but his journey of seeing his parents get ripped away from him and his journey of bottling everything up to try to stay strong made me tear up so much. Let me just say that for a debut novel, Daniel Aleman is a master at making you feel stuff. (I mean, many authors do this to us readers, but this one grips us with realistic tragedies that make us consider the life of undocumented people)
I know it's an issue that not many may care about. Some citizens of the US may just be indifferent to it. They might just hear the word "immigration" like saying "politics" and just ignore it. This book gives you a reason WHY we shouldn't ignore it. It gives us a reason for all of us who are children of immigrants to consider what it REALLY means to be American in a world where we'll (almost) always be an outsider. It's hard to belong, but we're never really alone and I loved that about this book.
Mateo could lean on the help of Uncle Jorge and his diverse friends Kimmie and Adam (which btw are precious beans) and even people in his community. Oh, and maybe even the cockroaches too.
My point is, EVERYONE should read this book. It's not just to cry a little or to sympathize with a character or to "feel too much" while reading this book, but it's to change your mind. It's to educate yourself with what REALLY happens when deportation happens. It's to make ourselves as people a bit kinder towards those who struggle for a place here in US. It's a book that leads to bigger conversations that we may not be ready to have, but that we should anyway. It was an enlightening experience for me. If I could give it a 10/5, I absolutely would.
Yes Mateo, me too. I feel too much and this book?
Got me hooked, got me on edge, made me cry, and made me laugh, cheer, cry some more and I absolutely fell in LOVE with this book. It literally changed my life. Maybe not super HUGE change to my life, but it definitely does change my perspective on stuff like immigration, what it means to be American when your parents are immigrants, and the heavy burden of being an older sibling all while being sensitive and someone who feels too much.
I saw so much of myself in Mateo (older sibling, spanish-speaking, questioning what it means to be American, Hamilton fan, fear of cockroaches (EEK) etc.) The list could go on, but his journey of seeing his parents get ripped away from him and his journey of bottling everything up to try to stay strong made me tear up so much. Let me just say that for a debut novel, Daniel Aleman is a master at making you feel stuff. (I mean, many authors do this to us readers, but this one grips us with realistic tragedies that make us consider the life of undocumented people)
I know it's an issue that not many may care about. Some citizens of the US may just be indifferent to it. They might just hear the word "immigration" like saying "politics" and just ignore it. This book gives you a reason WHY we shouldn't ignore it. It gives us a reason for all of us who are children of immigrants to consider what it REALLY means to be American in a world where we'll (almost) always be an outsider. It's hard to belong, but we're never really alone and I loved that about this book.
Mateo could lean on the help of Uncle Jorge and his diverse friends Kimmie and Adam (which btw are precious beans) and even people in his community. Oh, and maybe even the cockroaches too.
My point is, EVERYONE should read this book. It's not just to cry a little or to sympathize with a character or to "feel too much" while reading this book, but it's to change your mind. It's to educate yourself with what REALLY happens when deportation happens. It's to make ourselves as people a bit kinder towards those who struggle for a place here in US. It's a book that leads to bigger conversations that we may not be ready to have, but that we should anyway. It was an enlightening experience for me. If I could give it a 10/5, I absolutely would.