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A review by sol_journal
An American Immigrant by Johanna Rojas Vann
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
*Thank you Netgalley and WaterBrook Multnomah for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!*
Posted to: NetGalley, Goodreads, and The StoryGraph
Posted on: 5 May 2023
4.4 (rounded down to 4) out of 5 stars
Beautifully moving. ‘An American Immigrant’ shares a few personal experiences and tidbits with added fictional storytelling to capture Melanie Carvajal’s story of living in the inbetween.
What Johanna Rojas Vann does so amazingly is depict the life of children of immigrants. Like Melanie, I always felt too Mexican for America yet too American for Mexico. I went so long without knowing my parents’ full story, and I also resented some part of my life for *being* stuck in that inbetween and for not feeling confident in my culture like other Mexican-Americans were.
Like Melanie, I had grieved a part of myself whenever I *did* finally find my roots again and started to find myself in this middle ground a lot of first and second generation people find themselves in. I grieved all the time I lost resenting and wishing I was either Mexican or American, not Mexican-American with the - in between. I think the story of watching Melanie get to this point was also wonderfully painted too, including descriptions of Columbia and Colombian food and music. Any Hispanic and/or Latine person knows how important food and music are for our culture too, so this extra touch about Melanie’s experiences and connections with this in Columbia was also close to home.
The characters were lovable in of themselves too, each one important to Melanie’s discovery of her home and culture. There were a few times where Melanie’s old mindset of Columbia (and thus her actions to her mother and about Columbia) grew a bit irritating. She changed with the reading of the journals, but I think those bitter actions are also something many first and second generation kids experience at least once if they never found solid footing in where they stand with themselves and their culture.
The writing fell a little short in some areas too, but overall the book was an enjoyable read. Around the middle and the end, I found myself relating to Melanie again and wanting to read more of the journals to find out what happened next.
‘An American Immigrant’ grants a look into the life of those children born in between two spaces. Johanna Rojas Vann does an *amazing* job in incorporating personal pieces to make this book come to life more and make it all the more bingable. I loved feeling seen with a novel like this and feeling that acceptance as a fellow daughter stuck in that middle space. I highly recommend this book for others who find themselves neither one side nor the other of their heritage, and discover the sense of belonging to both alongside Melanie Carvajal.
Posted to: NetGalley, Goodreads, and The StoryGraph
Posted on: 5 May 2023
4.4 (rounded down to 4) out of 5 stars
Beautifully moving. ‘An American Immigrant’ shares a few personal experiences and tidbits with added fictional storytelling to capture Melanie Carvajal’s story of living in the inbetween.
What Johanna Rojas Vann does so amazingly is depict the life of children of immigrants. Like Melanie, I always felt too Mexican for America yet too American for Mexico. I went so long without knowing my parents’ full story, and I also resented some part of my life for *being* stuck in that inbetween and for not feeling confident in my culture like other Mexican-Americans were.
Like Melanie, I had grieved a part of myself whenever I *did* finally find my roots again and started to find myself in this middle ground a lot of first and second generation people find themselves in. I grieved all the time I lost resenting and wishing I was either Mexican or American, not Mexican-American with the - in between. I think the story of watching Melanie get to this point was also wonderfully painted too, including descriptions of Columbia and Colombian food and music. Any Hispanic and/or Latine person knows how important food and music are for our culture too, so this extra touch about Melanie’s experiences and connections with this in Columbia was also close to home.
The characters were lovable in of themselves too, each one important to Melanie’s discovery of her home and culture. There were a few times where Melanie’s old mindset of Columbia (and thus her actions to her mother and about Columbia) grew a bit irritating. She changed with the reading of the journals, but I think those bitter actions are also something many first and second generation kids experience at least once if they never found solid footing in where they stand with themselves and their culture.
The writing fell a little short in some areas too, but overall the book was an enjoyable read. Around the middle and the end, I found myself relating to Melanie again and wanting to read more of the journals to find out what happened next.
‘An American Immigrant’ grants a look into the life of those children born in between two spaces. Johanna Rojas Vann does an *amazing* job in incorporating personal pieces to make this book come to life more and make it all the more bingable. I loved feeling seen with a novel like this and feeling that acceptance as a fellow daughter stuck in that middle space. I highly recommend this book for others who find themselves neither one side nor the other of their heritage, and discover the sense of belonging to both alongside Melanie Carvajal.