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A review by taliejane
I Was Their American Dream: A Graphic Memoir by Malaka Gharib
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
I loved this graphic novel! Malaka takes the reader on a charmingly illustrated journey through her experience as the child of first generation immigrants in the USA - her father from Egypt and mother from the Philippines.
She explains ways in which she loved the various aspects of both cultures but also how she sometimes struggled between honouring her heritage and growing up as an all American woman. The anecdotes are interesting (I knew very little about either culture going in!) and at times super relatable (Irish catholics and Filipino catholics are not so different haha). The illustrations are really cool, although at first I didn't like the style so much, it totally grew on me and I loved how all the characters were shown with so much love.
It's also very insightful and poignant at times, discussing unique immigrant experiences surrounding your identity and how you interact with the majority culture of a country. As neither an American nor an immigrant in my own country, it was a totally new thing to learn about! Sometimes Malaka was accused of being too whitewashed by people in her own culture. Other times, she was told she identified too strongly as an immigrant and she shouldn't ask people what mix of ethnicity they were. Meanwhile, that was always the way she identified herself to others in order to connect with her community. It was a really interesting conflict. And it was beautiful, hopeful ending.
The tone of the story is consistently uplifting and energetic. I'd really recommend it to anyone, although younger kids might struggle with the vocabulary.
She explains ways in which she loved the various aspects of both cultures but also how she sometimes struggled between honouring her heritage and growing up as an all American woman. The anecdotes are interesting (I knew very little about either culture going in!) and at times super relatable (Irish catholics and Filipino catholics are not so different haha). The illustrations are really cool, although at first I didn't like the style so much, it totally grew on me and I loved how all the characters were shown with so much love.
It's also very insightful and poignant at times, discussing unique immigrant experiences surrounding your identity and how you interact with the majority culture of a country. As neither an American nor an immigrant in my own country, it was a totally new thing to learn about! Sometimes Malaka was accused of being too whitewashed by people in her own culture. Other times, she was told she identified too strongly as an immigrant and she shouldn't ask people what mix of ethnicity they were. Meanwhile, that was always the way she identified herself to others in order to connect with her community. It was a really interesting conflict. And it was beautiful, hopeful ending.
The tone of the story is consistently uplifting and energetic. I'd really recommend it to anyone, although younger kids might struggle with the vocabulary.