2019-03 - Multicultural - What did you read and how did it fit in?

[PAS, Moderator AC]

So...last month was a bit late, so I thought this month should be a bit early....besides, February is a short month, so we will be into March before we even turn around.

Which multicultural books have you read.



In addition, don't forget to post:
*link to the book you've read
*a star rating -see below for template you can copy & paste ;)
*shelf nomination (see Shelf Lists for what has been and cannot be nominated)
*link to any PAS challenge/s you've fit this book into

Remember:
#Your nominated Shelf must have at least 1,000 books to qualify
#Entries for your nominated shelf will be calculated as follows;
+1 - posting the book you've read for this Monthly Shelf & star rating
+1 - word review (at least 3 sentences of your thoughts/feelings on the book)
+1 - link to another PAS challenge* where you've included this book

Star template:
★
★½
★★
★★½
★★★
★★★½
★★★★
★★★★½
★★★★★

[LynnB]

I read The Color of Lightning by Paulette Jiles
★★★★★
This is historical fiction set mostly in the Texas/Oklahoma area following the Civil War. The characters are Black, White, Kiowa (and other tribal) Indian and Mexican, settling, claiming and defending the land . I loved the story, though it was a difficult one, and I found the characters very believable.

The book was part of my "Moving Mountains, 2019 Edition" challenge.

Nominated Shelf: historical fiction

[Jamie]

I read My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.




What an original, smart, well-written story! I love how the author kept it short as to not overdo it and the ending was superb. It takes place in Lagos, Nigeria, so it was a country and culture not usually explored in mainstream Western media.

★★★★½

I nominate the shelf New Jersey

[Tien]

Empress of all Seasons by Emiko Jean
shelved as 'multicultural' by 1 user BUT I don't really think it's multicultural because there's really only 1 culture in the book. Maybe 'multicultural' because the user who shelved it as such is from a different culture?

Only a grudging ★★★

I really truly wish to love this book but... Even while loving the lush ancient Japanese world, it was just so. very. slow. going. If you have no patience or you feel like reading something fast-paced, I'd recommend you to read something else first. This is a book where you'd read to enjoy the world - but only if you love this type of world which I do hence I was able to keep going and finish the book.

The last 50 pages were pretty exciting but felt very very very rushed. I think quite a bit of a cut in the first 300 pages and make that 50 pages into 100 may push this book up to 4 stars for me. I did like the world and Mari's discovery of herself BUT it's that slow, I had no problem stopping mid-chapter and picking it back up in a couple of days' time and this is Not at all my style. So, only 3 stars because lack of feels (I just didn't feel the urgent need to finish the read).

Fit into PnM (covers)

Nominating: asia

[Dee]

When Dimple Met Rishi - shelved as multicultural by 57ppl

Rating: 3 stars

Review: i’m Kind of conflicted in that I liked the insight into Hindi/Indian cultures/traditions but the plot itself was a very typical YA romance - drama, bullying (of the main character) for being different. Author had a very easy writing style that kept me engaged - it was a decent read - didn’t blow my mind but not horrible either

Also fits: Pick’n’Mix (listopia)

Nominating: police procedural - https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/...

[Tien]

The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen -shelved as 'multicultural' by 5 users

★★★★

This is a collection of short stories where, as title indicates, it is a tale of refugees. Most protags were of Vietnamese extraction but there was 1 particular story that wasn't but rather someoe who found refuge (home) in Vietnam. Refugees/Immigrants stories are usually full of heartbreak and mostly due to the loses; not just of lives but that break in the family followed by the struggle in settling into a new country and the internal conflict of 'who am I and where do I belong'. This author, obviously, have gone through a very similar experience of his own being a refugee himself and I found a lot in this novel that also chimes true with my own experience as an immigrant.

Fit into PnM (DIY) & MM19

Nominating: here-be-dragons

[Dee]

American Panda - shelved as multicultural by 26ppl

★★★½

i'm kind of conflicted on this - similar to my other read - I wanted to love it, but it felt so much like other YA romances - yes Mei was Taiwanese and I loved the insight into familial dynamics - but in general the story was very so-so - I honestly debated putting it aside about 50 pages in, but it started to pick up and I ended up liking the second half more than the first

Fits - PnM (Listopia)

Nominating: Asia

[Elvenn]

For this month's shelf I've read Blue Shoes and Happiness by Alexander McCall Smith (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency #7).

It was a very fast read with the usual warmth we've come to expect from Mma Ramotswe's- Botswana detective- books. But, although I enjoyed it, it wasn't among the best of the series: I thought the plot and the cases lacked complexity and that the author was content with just showing us a slice of the characters' lives. ¿Do they eat cake? ¿Do they buy a chair? ¿Do they get new shoes? Not much happens and the book ends being less about Mma Ramotswe's work and more about how the characters we love are doing.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Shelf nomination: Translated

[LynnB]

Jimmy Bluefeather by Kim Heacox
★★★★½

This story was wonderful! Set in Southeast Alaska, It's the story of a part-Norwegian, part-Tlingit Native ("with some Filipino and Portuguese thrown in"), his grandson, and their friends and community. When the grandson's promising basketball career comes to a crashing halt due to a logging accident, he thinks he has nothing left to live for, but his grandfather (age 95 -- or maybe 100?) takes on the task of changing those thoughts. The two take on the task of carving a canoe the old way and embark on a great canoe journey.

The story is so beautiful and descriptive. It makes the beauty of Alaska come alive. Recommended!

Shelf nomination: historical fiction

[Dee]

Lion - shelved as multicultural 3 times - Finished 3/26/19

i remember a couple of years ago my mom telling me about this movie and how she was planning on using it for her high school history class - and while i considered reading the book, i never got that far. Fast-forward to this month and i realized that it fit nicely into a SRC reading challenge (non-fiction/author initials in a 3 word sentence). It was an interesting read and goes to show how google maps can be used in different ways (I think back to my time in the Navy and having to navigate into a port with no charts by using google maps).

Rating: ★★★★

Shelf Nomination: Books Into Movies

[Paige]

I read A Thousand Splendid Sons by Khaled Hosseini. It was one of the high recommended books in the bookshelf.

so here is my thoughts. i took out the spoilers so you can find my full review in the actual book reviews attached to the book.

I picked up this book expecting the same quality as The Kite Runner. I am a tad disappointed that it was not the same kind of thrilling and entertaining storyline like The Kite Runner. I found times of this book quite dry as the story went on until about 75% done it. Then I feel like the story was starting to pick up. I still did enjoy the book but my expectations were not met.


Still a good story. Just lower expectations if you read The Kite Runner.

[Jamie]

I was able to fit in another book this month for the theme, this time the Graphic Novel (manga?) Lafcadio Hearn's "The Faceless Ghost" and Other Macabre Tales from Japan: A Graphic Novel by Sean Michael Wilson.



A fantastic collection of eerie stories brilliantly illustrated and leaving me wanting more! I know there are many other stories besides the handful illustrated here and I'd like to read them all, hopefully some others have similar types of illustrations because it really adds to the story.

I nominate New Jersey

[Marina]

I read Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, ★★★★½.

It was a wonderful novel and, despite its 610 pages, I could have read more (and I wish it had ended a bit less abruptly). It certainly fits the shelving as it is about Nigerian, American and British culture (even if there is less talk of British culture than the other two).

Ifemelu is a Nigerian woman who goes to the US for university. At first she has a very, very hard time there, because she is unable to find a job which would allow her to pay her university fees since she only has a partial scholarship. Her boyfriend Obinze remains at home in Nigeria but they hope to be reunited soon, which won't happen for reasons that will be explained in the novel.

However, this is not only Ifemelu's and Obinze's story, this is much more than that. It's a novel about race and racism seen from a perspective which may be unusual to us "Westerners", namely that of an African (I guess you all know that Adichie is a Nigerian author). This is a very different perspective than that of an African American, she has a much different take on things, which is eye-opening.

I could go on for hours but I think you'd best read this book for yourselves, it is nearly flawless in my opinion. Highly recommended to everyone.

*

I've also used this book for Bookopoly.

My shelf nomination is weird.

[Lisette]

I've read The Ghost Bride [27-mar-19] ★★★★

From the first page I was hooked. The MC is likable. I was intrigued by the story, since I didn't know the tradition of marrying someone who has already died. It is well written with an interesting plot.

Used for: Pick and Mix - Stage 2: Non-genre shelves

My shelf nomination: guilty-pleasure-reads

[Bea]

Finished Brown Girl Dreaming and gave it 5*. I seldom give 5*, but this book earned it for the poetry and the pictures those words gave me as I read it. Very well done.

Now, note that I am not one to reach for a memoir or poetry as a first choice, not even a tenth choice. Mysteries come first, second and even third in my choice of what to read. So for me to give a memoir/poetry book such a high rating is nearly a miracle.

First, this memoir was set partly in a world I am familiar with (The South) but from the perspective that wasn't mine (black people). And then it was partly in a world I am at least cognizant of (NYC). So the territory felt comfortable enough that I stayed with the memories.

Second, it evoked my emotions. When a book can evoke my emotions, especially when the experiences are not my own, I find I engage more with the book and end up liking the read even when I may not like the situation. It moved me. Sometimes it moved me lazily (sitting on the porch swing on a summer afternoon) and sometimes fiercely (Roman eating paint and getting sick).

To me, the multicultural aspect of this memoir was certainly in the various cultures experienced from Ohio to South Carolina to NYC as well as the culture I brought to those settings as I read. Any book that can contrast for the reader her own culture and the one of which she is reading and help her find the similarities between the two becomes a multicultural read in the best of the word.

This fit an old game: Wheel 3

My shelf nomination: Scandinavian Literature

[Rosemary]

I read
The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson
★★★★★

I thought this was a totally amazing book. It's the story of a boy brought up as an experimental subject in the 18th century, a slave, but given every access to educational advantages - until things change and he isn't.

It's marketed as a YA book and I think in a way that's a pity, because the language is quite difficult and all the classical references would put some young people off. But I thought it was wonderful.

This fits the Serial challenge.

Shelf nomination: 20th century

[Karin]

Darn, I finished one last week but am behind on my reviews so missed it!!!!

[Sassafrass]

I forgot to post! WHAT! I don't need to nominate a shelf since mine have been coming up lately, but, I will post my review.

I read The Kiss Quotient (on 3/7/19) for this and rated it *4 STARS*.

This was adorable. I have a thing for awkward/quirky heroines. And I really liked Stella. I loved the way she took control of her life when hiring Michael.

I knew that they were perfect for each other from their first time together. And I'm glad they got it together enough to both realize it as well.

Such a sweet ending I was really sad to see it though. I could have read about those two forever.

[Dee]

Sassy - her new one about Michael’s cousin comes out in a couple months

[Sassafrass]

Dee wrote: "Sassy - her new one about Michael’s cousin comes out in a couple months"

Yeah, I've got it on my TBR.

[Christina]

I finished late, but I did finish! I read Esperanza Rising. It is about a girl who has lived her life as a wealthy Mexican ranch owner's daughter. Her father passes away and she and her mother follow the family servants to America for work. It is multi cultural in both race, country of origin, and "culture shock", so I believe it fit very well in this category. It was touching and downright sad many times. ★★★★