American Brat

I think the most interesting character in the book is Manek. I think the dynamics of him being from a certain culture but so highly influenced by his stay in America is very unique. For me, Manek embodies all the characteristics of a person who has strong background fundamentals but also is in a place that contradicts those values. In the book, when Feroza came to visit America, what was most interesting was that Manek was almost "showing off America" to Feroza (78) as though he was trying to convince her that America was ideal. Also Manek would also speak to Feroza as though they were from two different cultures. referring to her as "Third World" or a "desi." But eventhough Manek often spoke of America in a good light he still showed his disdain for the people. This is seen when Manek says "Once you know enough whites, you'll realize how ignorant and dirty they are and you'll stop feeling sorry for bastards like him (84)." Manek who lives in America does not let that completely avert him form his culture, which is seen when he goes back to Lahore to marry a parsee woman. I think Manek shows how different cultures can affect a person. On the one hand he has his culuture and the values that he has been taught and he wants to maintain them. But on the other hand he has the values that one picks up from being in America and he knows that he has more opportunities in America. It's people like manek that give insight into the mind of an "outsider."

Breath, Eyes, Memory

I think, in this book, the idea of not being free to make your own choices is very important. I think a lot of the feelings or actions that the women were making were because they felt is was their "duty." With Tante Atie, she had to let Sophie go back to her mother and she was deeply sad about this but she did not let her feelings show. "We have no right to be sad" (17) is how she responded to Sophie's leaving, meaning she felt she did not have a right to be sad because Sophie was not her real child. Another instance of Tante Atie expressing duty is when she told Sophie "We are each going to our mothers. that is what was supposed to happen" (19). In both of these instances tante Atie never spoke of wanting to do these things. Another instance of
"duty" is the testing. The testing was seen as the mother's responsibility to protect their daughter. This is seen when Martine says, "..... a mother is supposed to do that to her daughter until the daughter is married. It is her responsibility to keep her pure" (66). I think what is more interesting is that everyone hated it but until Sophie no one stopped the tradtiion of it. Even Sophie showed signs of doing things only because she felt she had to. After Sophie had the baby she was not interested in being sexual but she still had sex with her husband because she felt that it was her duty as a wife. I think in this book one can see how being forced or feeling pressured to do something really affect one's life. That a person's freedom can liberate a person and without it they can feel like a "caged bird."

The Joys of Motherhood

I think that throughout the novel the most significant aspect of it was Nnu Ego's committment to her children. Nnu Ego never felt like she was a complete woman until she had children with Nnaife. This is because "she had been brought up to beilive that children made a woman" (219). When Nnu Ego first had her child and lost it, she was soo depressed because she felt like a failure, and she even tried to committ suicide. Nnu Ego spent all her money, and time, and energy raising her children well so that one day they would take care of her when she was old. This is seen when Nnaife was always telling her sons to "work hard in school" or when she was tellin them that they were "handsome" or "her boys." This relationship she maintained with the only male heirs of Nnaife was out of true love and out of hope that they would give back to the family when they got older. The problem with this situation is that Nnu Ego became almost a slave to her children due to her love for them. "It occurred to Nnu Ego that she was a prisoner, imprisoned by her love for her children" (137). Nnu Ego would not leave Nnaife even in the worst of times because of the children that she had had with him. She also did the most strenuous job, that of gathering the wood, to make sure her boys could remain in school and that she had enough money to feed the family. Nnu Ego thought that when she got older she would have a litlle peace but this was not the case. Her eldest son Oshia did not help the family like she hoped and he even married a white lady. Nnu ego would eventually have to move back to Ibuza where she died with no since of peace. "Poor Nnu Ego, even in death she had no peace (224)!

Annie John

I think the most dynamic relationship within this book is that between Annie and her mother. When Annie was younger she adored her mother. Her mother included her in everything and she wanted to be just like her mother. This is seen when Annie says "I spent the day following my mother around and observing the way she did everything." "How important I felt to be with my mother." (15) As she began to get older I think Annie still wanted to be trapped in that time period but her mother knew that she could no longer baby her. I think Annie mistook her growing up as disapproval form her mother and it really dampened their relationship. "What a new thing this was fro me : my mother's back turned on me in disgust." (28) this rift in the relationship between Annie and her mother played a role in how Annie related to the girls she was "in love with" I think that Annie might have really adored Gwen and The Red Girl but a lot of thier time spent together was because she knew it was what her mother did not want her to be doing. "I had to do exactly the oppposite of whatever she desired of me" (61). Although Annie disliked her mother she still wanted to be in her good graces and she made sure that she did things that were pleasing to her mother. " Whenever I felt I was falling out of my mother's good graces I would let hersee me absorbed in these books;" Annie resented her mother for her perfection and her wanting Annie to be the same, and this was the ultimate reason for her leaving to England

The House on Mango Street

I thought it was very interesting that pretty much everyone on Mango Street really did not have that much and the things that they did have were not grandiose. The amount of physical things that they lacked they made up for in the size of the family. Everyone was pretty family oriented, even Sally whose father abused her. I think that this concept is very big in the Mexican culture. I felt very sorry for Esperanza because she was always jealous of the beauty that she never had, unlike that of Marin and Sally. She wished she could get the attention that they did. In the book I do not think Esperanza had any one thing that she was extremely proud to call her own. She did not have a boyfriend or nice jewelry or shoes that she actually liked. I think this is why she was always dreaming of having her own home, one that she could be proud of and had nice draperies and things of that sort. Although Esperanza lived a menial life, her parents never guarded her like some of the other people. She got to go out with her friends and she was not bound to look out from the window. In this sense her life was very full. It is unclear to me whether or not she got the house she wanted but from the story one can deduce that she would be more appreciative of those material things because of her upbringing.

The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf

In this book I thought that Khadra's transformation was most interesting. When she was a girl she was all about following the laws of her community precisely and as a small child how she would challenge others if they were not the same. This is seen when she would compare the practices of the Nation of Islam (Black Muslims) with the trasitional Muslims, and how they contrasted the idea of converting and coming into your consciousness. As a child even though she might or might not have understood everything, she had a great zeal for the practices and traditions of the Muslim faith. I do not think that when she grew up she lost this zeal, but I think that she was chllenged because of the way she saw others and the freedoms and liberties that they had. I think that she had to find her own Mulism identity and what that meant to her. Like how she went out without her hijab on but later she would still go out with her veil on, because that was her way of identifying herself as a proud muslim. I think that after Khadra got older the love for her culture and faith was not about what her parents taught her as a child or any traditions, I think it became something that was embedded in her.
In this book I do have to say that I did not enjoy the writing style. I find that if you are not Muslim or have a good idea of the terminology you tend to loose focus on what she is saying and talking about. I think that it is hard for a person to follow along because half of the words that she is using you do not understand. It is almost like reading in another language. You find yourself confused.

Kindred

Kindred was a very interesting book. The part of the book that I enjoyed the most was when Kevin time travelled with Dana. I think he would have never been able to understand what she was going through if he hadn't went with her. I think the trip helped the dynamics of their relationship. They both could understand the moral sacrifices that each other had to make to stay alive and they appreciated each other for it. For instance, Kevin had to pretend as though he was Dana's master even though they were married. This really could have put a strain on their realtionship, because they didn't get to spend alot of time together. But this was not the case because Kevin made it so that Dana could sleep in his room, and he always looked after her the best way possible. What struck me as odd was the trust that Dana had in Rufus. I understand that it was her destiny to make sure that Hagar was born but I never would have given Rufus as many chances as he had to betray her. He sent her to work in the fields and he ran after her when she tried to escape. After those incidents I would have killed him myself. When I was reading the book, I was really sad about the things that the slaves had to face: the beatings, and the degradation. I ask myself if I would have had the courage to live a life of this sort; if I would have had the courage to defend my family when needed. To my dismay, I don't think I would have been mentally or physically strong enough. To have to be beaten by a person who had just raped you, or to have my children and family sold away while I worked in the fields, would have been too much for me to handle. I begin to wonder about my own lineage. What kind of cruelty did my ancestors have to face? And are there any stories of courage and valor? Reading a book like this puts alot of things in perspective for me. Had I been born a hundred years ago or even 60, I think my life would have been drastically different.