Book 1

American Like Me

The first book I chose was American Like Me by America Ferrera. I was intrigued by the fact that each chapter was written by different people that shared stories about their life and culture. There are thirty-one stories of people who grew up with deep and personal connections to more than one culture. The more I read, the more I related to struggling to establish a sense of self and finding a way to belong growing up in America while being part of a different culture. The collection of stories from other artists, actors, and athletes that I grew up admiring is one of my favorite aspects of the book, along with the images before each chapter. 

One of my favorite chapters so far is Laurie Hernandez. I remember watching her compete in the 2016 Olympics and Dancing with the Stars as a teenager and being excited to cheer on a Latina girl my age! From the beginning, I loved her expressive language and how she added emojis to her writing. I admired the fact that she never shyed away from being expressive and her curly hair. When she talked about her grandma pulling her hair tight while brushing it into pigtails I had flashbacks to my mom using the same technique every morning before kindergarten. I really enjoyed learning more about Laurie's life and relationship with her grandma, and I cannot wait to read the rest of the  book!