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A review by bookmindedmag
Make Your Home Among Strangers by Jennine Capó Crucet
5.0
This book had me going through so many emotions, but the one that had me on edge through most of the book was frustration. I was frustrated with Lizet, the young Cuban-American from Miami who found her way to a fancy college; her family, who seemed to not want her to do anything at all but stay in Miami; and several people at her school who just seemed oblivious to pretty much anything outside of their white bubble.
I decided to read this book after the appalling events at Georgia Southern which literally had us watching students burn the author’s book. And after reading this novel I know why the did it, aside from being spoiled, privileged racists. The novel was burned because they recognized themselves in the story and didn’t like what they saw. They didn’t like the microagressions towards Lizet at every turn, the lack of empathy for Ariel Hernandez, the young Cuban boy who became part of a media and political storm in the late 90s, and they especially didn’t like the constant feeling Lizet had of not belonging, even though she was born in America. It is a feeling many students of color and poor whites have in college and throughout their lives.
I did reserve some judgement towards Lizet because of how she handled some things. But I had to remember that although I would have done so many things differently, it is because I had a more supportive family when it came to my education. My family encouraged my decision to go away for college and I never felt like I didn’t belong there. If anything, Lizet was seen as the enemy for having the audacity to want more for herself, something many of my friends had to struggle with. Too many times, I wanted to shake Lizet and tell her to stop worrying about all that and just concentrate on her grades. But I would have been wrong to ignore her problems and feelings. She deserved to be heard, to want a different life, to be told she was worth more.
I’m definitely looking forward to reading more of the author’s other work. She is a fantastic writer.
I decided to read this book after the appalling events at Georgia Southern which literally had us watching students burn the author’s book. And after reading this novel I know why the did it, aside from being spoiled, privileged racists. The novel was burned because they recognized themselves in the story and didn’t like what they saw. They didn’t like the microagressions towards Lizet at every turn, the lack of empathy for Ariel Hernandez, the young Cuban boy who became part of a media and political storm in the late 90s, and they especially didn’t like the constant feeling Lizet had of not belonging, even though she was born in America. It is a feeling many students of color and poor whites have in college and throughout their lives.
I did reserve some judgement towards Lizet because of how she handled some things. But I had to remember that although I would have done so many things differently, it is because I had a more supportive family when it came to my education. My family encouraged my decision to go away for college and I never felt like I didn’t belong there. If anything, Lizet was seen as the enemy for having the audacity to want more for herself, something many of my friends had to struggle with. Too many times, I wanted to shake Lizet and tell her to stop worrying about all that and just concentrate on her grades. But I would have been wrong to ignore her problems and feelings. She deserved to be heard, to want a different life, to be told she was worth more.
I’m definitely looking forward to reading more of the author’s other work. She is a fantastic writer.