Questions About The Good Immigrant

by Nikesh Shukla (Goodreads Author)

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Answered Questions (2)

I need to get going reading this (just got it from the library!) ... but can anyone recommend one of the stories for teaching in a high school English class?

Züß The obvious answer would be “You can’t say that! Stories have to be about white people” by Darren Chetty, which is about teaching creative writing. Bu…moreThe obvious answer would be “You can’t say that! Stories have to be about white people” by Darren Chetty, which is about teaching creative writing. But it depends what the topic / purpose of the lesson is?(less)

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would this be a good read for immigrants in canada? does it apply to the canadian context?

Jose Probably yes. However, the Canadian experience does include the sizable issue of First nations' peoples and the fact that most of the country is popul…moreProbably yes. However, the Canadian experience does include the sizable issue of First nations' peoples and the fact that most of the country is populated by immigrants. The "Good Immigrant" includes stories from third generation 'immigrants' which really is the case for most Canadians.

In the case of First Nations, the population would rightly consider immigrants of any color as colonizers. issues like lack TV representation or cultural appropriation (of Haida art for example) pale in comparison to the difficult adaption to a nation state.
The "Good Immigrant" writers often complain about "whites" not understanding their specific origin, confusing Indians with Arabs and so on. In Canada, the same could be said about everyone because whites also come from places as diverse as Brazil or Sweden. In some cases the abundance of Chinese investment has created a neo-colonial problem where China is the oppressive power.
That said, some parts of the book are relatable and even interesting even if they often read as primer of social studies. I liked a couple of the stories where the author talks about their personal experience and not in general terms about why Harry Potter has no black wizards or why it is ok to attack a white kid wearing dreadlocks (It is not).

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