America Deconstructed by Chaithanya Sohan and Shaima Adin ~ My Thoughts #AmericaDeconstructed #JKSCommunications

America Deconstructed

America Deconstructed by Chaithanya Sohan and Shaima Adin
Paperback, 184 pages
Expected publication: March 5th 2019 by Motivational Press

Naseer was nine years old when he escaped Taliban and fled Afghanistan with his mom and siblings. His story, “There are some people who are coming to take me away”, chronicles the resilience of a nine year old boy as he traveled from Afghanistan to America in his quest for the American dream.

“I saw a ripe mango I’d like to pluck” showcases the love story of Chidiebere and Ifeyinwa, which begins in rustic Nigeria and culminates into a life in America. Their journey chronicles their struggles with language, culture and being African in America.

In the story “ Kosovo, really...cool”, Lisian takes us through his journey to America and often being asked his identity in spite of being white.

In the story “I am exotic, mocha, P-diddy”, Parag describes his journey from a young sixth grader who hid his attraction to boys in conservative India to embracing his sexuality in America.

America Deconstructed follows the journeys of sixteen immigrants who have left their home countries in search of the American dream. The stories combine humor and emotions as the protagonists maneuver cultural differences, accents and uncomfortable situations while feeling a sense of belonging in America.

     

My thoughts about America Deconstructed ~~

America Deconstructed was a very enlightening book for me. It opened my eyes to the strength and perseverance of the sixteen people who wrote about their lives—their dreams of coming to America and the life they hoped they would find here, the reality of it all when they finally did get here, and how they felt after being here for awhile. I know I would not be brave enough, or as determined as these people were, to uproot myself and move to a foreign country. 

I had not really thought about the fact that so many people have this big dream of coming to America and how they envision their lives being so much better than the life they are leaving behind. But at what cost? And is that dream realistic? As an American, it was humbling for me to imagine that living in this country was seen as one of the goals in their lives, something that I just take for granted every day. I can't even imagine moving to a different country and a totally different culture, while rarely returning home, if at all.

I was struck by the hardships they encountered when they found themselves in a totally foreign place, most of the time not being able to speak the language very well. And then the reality of the streets not being 'lined with gold', as they dreamed they would be.    

In all of the stories in America Deconstructed, each writer has made a life for themselves here, even with all the hardships they had to endure to adjust to their new world. A recurring thread that I found through all of the stories was that even though they are 'living the dream' now in America, they all still think of their country as their 'home' and they still yearn for that familiar life and for their families. And that is as it should be—no one should have to give up or forget about their past. 

To all sixteen of the people I met in America Deconstructed, I want to say, 'Welcome to America!'

I received America Deconstructed from JKS Communications in exchange for my honest review.

About the author

I am Chaithanya Sohan, an Electrical Engineer by day and an author by chance. I am currently a full time Engineer with dreams to be a full time writer at some point. I live in California with my African American husband, kid, mom and 90lbs of German Shepherd goodness named Zed. He has me by his little tail! My everyday is a cultural mix masala of African American-ness and Indian-ness which has been chronicled in the first story, An Alien in America in my book America Deconstructed.

My debut novel: America Deconstructed which will be out in 2018

My next novel: America Deconstructed part 2 or a murder mystery! ~ Author's website

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