REVIEWS OF RESOURCES

Literature for Young Readers

Hinton, S. E.  The Outsiders.  New York:  Penguin Putnam, 1967.  180 pp.  ISBN 0-14-038572-x (pb).   $4.99 (ages 11 up)

A classic among American adolescent literature, this novel describes the tensions of class conflict at a teenage level. As narrated by a "Greaser," the book depicts the distinctions and animosities between the rich and poor as seen through the eyes of two adolescent street gangs. The "Greasers" are a gang of poor kids and the "Socials" or "Socs" are a gang of rich kids. There is ongoing street violence between the two gangs. Ultimately, the futility and senselessness of the fighting become evident to the novel’s narrator, a 14-year-old boy named Ponyboy. A moment of epiphany comes to him when he gets to know one of the "Socs" on a more personal level, only to discover that "the other guy was human, too" (p. 118).  -Cynthia Tuleja-

Kindersley, Anabel and Barnabas.  Children Just Like Me.  New York: DK Publishing, 1995.  80 pp.  ISBN 0-7894-0201-7 (hc).  $18.95 (ages 3 up)

One way to combat prejudice is to combat ignorance, and this book, sponsored by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), tries to do just that. By examining the lives of children across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia, this book personalizes the different races and ethnic groups by providing photographs and biographies of actual children from different countries, allowing each child's own "voice" to be heard in the process.  The result is an approach that reflects the philosophy that "the more things are different, the more they remain the same."  For example, six-year-old Yannis, a boy who lives in Greece, explains that his name means "John" (one very familiar to Americans), and that he really wants to visit Athens because "there must be lots of toys there" (p. 33).  -Cynthia Tuleja-

Krisher, Trudy.  Spite Fences.  New York: Delacorte Press, 1994.  283 pp.  ISBN 0-440-22016-5 (pb).  $4.99 (ages 11 up)

This novel describes the relationship between Maggie Pugh, who is white, and her friend Zeke (no last name given), who is black, in racially polarized Kinship, Georgia. Maggie, the book’s protagonist, narrates her experiences in a society divided by both race and class, yet she herself seems to be in the process of re-evaluating this division. Maggie takes a job working for a black man (unheard of for a white person in Kinship). She also has a close friendship with Zeke, whom she teaches to read. He, in turn, teaches Maggie that courage and moral fortitude are not determined by race or by the amount of "book learning" that one has -- a lesson that enables Maggie to transcend the limited cultural dictates of her home town.  -Cynthia Tuleja-

Tada, Joni Eareckson and Estes, Steven.  When God Weeps:  Why Our sufferings Matter to the Almighty.  Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1997.  255 pp. ISBN 0-310-21186-7 (hc).  $19.99 (ages 13 up)

Joni Eareckson Tada, a quadriplegic as a result of a swimming accident when she was in her teens, has for the past thirty years stood as a symbol of courage and fortitude in the face of adversity -– a spirit which breathes through the pages of this book. In When God Weeps: Why Our Sufferings Matter to the Almighty, Joni's narrative examines not only her own experience with difficult circumstances, but those of many others as well (including the victims of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, which should be relevant to students in America today).  As she leads the reader on a search for the meaning of suffering, her ultimate perspective on life inspires hope in the God who enables her to overcome; and through this attitude the reader sees Joni’s apparent weakness transformed into an abiding strength.  -Cynthia Tuleja-

Uchida, Yoshiko.  The Invisible Thread.  New York: Simon and Schuster, 1991. 136 pp. ISBN 0-688-13703-2 (pb). $4.95 (ages 11 up)

Yoshiko Uchida's story highlights the dramatic tale of her life as a young Japanese-American during World War II.   Yoshiko Uchida was born in California to Japanese immigrant parents and had a happy childhood.  When she was about to take the final exam in her last semester at Berkeley University, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor.  Although Uchida and her sister were born American citizens, under President Franklin Roosevelt's executive order issued in 1942 all members of her family were considered to be "nonaliens" from the enemy nation.  They were involuntarily relocated from their home in a comfortable climate to an internment camp in a harsh Utah desert.  Uchida's engaging narration of her life carries the reader through the roller-coaster of childhood happiness, shattered peace, anger, dehumanizing living conditions at the camp, reaffirmation of her Japanese-American identity, and a homecoming. Uchida's "cultural" autobiography demands that readers critically examine this complex aspect of America's history from the compelling point of view of one who lived through it.  -Heewon Chang-

Professional Literature

Samples of Life Story/Autobiography

David, Jay (ed). Growing Up Black : From Slave Days to the Present-25 African-Americans Reveal the Trials and Triumphs of Their Childhoods. New York: Avon Books, 1992. 276 pp. ISBN 0-380-76632-9 (pb), $12.00

This anthology of writings by African-Americans presents a wide array of historical and autobiographic accounts of what it means to grow up black in the United States.  The first section of the book comprises essays on "growing up black," including a section from I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou.  The next three sections organize writings into three chronological periods:  the 19th century, the first half of the 20th century, and the era from 1951 to the present.   Some authors, such as Frederick Douglass and Booker T. Washington, may be better known to readers than others; yet all contribute to the rich history of African-American literature. -Heewon Chang-

Fries, Kennedy (ed). Staring Back: The Disability Experience From the Inside Out. New York: Plume, 1997. 414 pp. ISBN 0-452-27913-5 (pb), $15.95

This anthology includes writings of various genres--nonfiction, poetry, fiction, and theater--written by 38 writers with disabilities.  The writings, whether autobiographic or creative, invite readers to look into the world of pain, struggle, self-discovery, affirmation, and triumph.  The disabilities described in this anthology range widely between the physical, psychological, and mental.  Some authors were born with physical disabilities, and others discovered their "hidden" disability as an adult, as in the case of the patients with Auto Immune Disease Symptoms (AIDS).  Some authors suffered from degenerative diseases and others lost parts of their body overnight as a result of an accident.  Whatever the specific disability, the authors speak in concert of their desire to be treated with dignity. -Heewon Chang-

Hong, Maria (ed). Growing Up Asian American: Stories of Childhood, Adolescence and Coming of Age in America, from the 1800s to the 1990s.  New York: Avon Books, 1995.  416 pp. ISBN 0-380-72418-9 (pb), $12.50

This anthology comprises 33 autobiographic and creative stories of childhood memories, the search for identity during early adolescence, and reflections on childhood written by Asian-American writers in the 1800s and the 1900s.  Some stories are original and others reprinted.  The anthology includes stories by Amy Tan (author of The Joy Luck Club), Toshio Mori (author of The Chauvinist and Other Stories), Gus Lee (author of China Boy), Sigrid Nunez (author of Chang), and Maxine Hong Kingston (author of The Woman Warrior), representing a compelling range of Asian ethnicities. -Heewon Chang-

Riley, Patricia (ed). Growing Up Native American: Stories of Oppression and Survival, of Heritage Denied and Reclaimed. New York: Avon Books, 1995. 333 pp. ISBN 0-380-72417-0 (pb), $12.00

This anthology complies autobiographic and creative writings of 22 Native American writers from the 19th and 20th centuries.  These writers represent 55 Native-American nations across the United States and Canada.   Each writer is identified with his/her tribal affiliation.  Although topics are varied, many of the works deal with sorrowful and happy experiences of growing up Native American and searching for an "Indian" identity.  Moving descriptions of the childhood memories of many writers affirm the rich cultural heritage that cries out to be conserved and passed down to new generations.  Three works by La Flesche, Deer and Erdoes, and Johnston invite readers to look into the struggles of Native American children who were educated in "Euro-American" boarding schools (run by whites) and yet resisted assimilating forces to maintain their cultural tradition. -Heewon Chang-

Rodriguez, Richard.  Hunger of Memory. New York: Bantam Books, 1982. 195 pp. ISBN 0-553-27293-4 (pb), $5.99

This autobiography describes how schooling in the U. S. contributed to Richard Rodriquez' loss of his "private" language, Spanish, and his intimacy with his home culture.  His education instead afforded him proficiency in the "public" language, English, which helped him to be successful as a writer and scholar of English literature.  This memoir of the Mexican-American author contains six autobiographic essays detailing the "mainstream" education he received in a parochial school and in prestigious universities; poignantly revealing his racial, ethnic, and religious self-consciousness; and his objection to the Affirmative Action policy that he feels benefits minorities from the middle class background more than those who are truly in need.  His autobiography provides a window into the life of a highly-educated, deeply-assimilated, upwardly-mobile Mexican-American who nevertheless struggles with the loss of his own culture because of this assimilation.  -Heewon Chang-

Autobiography/Biography/Life History

Igoa, Christina. The Inner World of the Immigrant Child. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1995. 218 pp. ISBN 0-8058-8013-5 (pb), $19.50

This book brings to light the "inner world of the immigrant child."  Christina Igoa, an experienced teacher of English as a Second Language (ESL) and a scholar of bilingual education, frames her encounters with immigrant children within the threefold model of cultural, academic, and psychological interventions.  As an immigrant from the Philippines, the author effectively interweaves her personal memories of travels to different countries with her students' stories of struggles and triumphs as immigrants.   Students' voices especially come alive through their photos and drawings. The threefold model suggests that educators need holistically to address the cultural, academic, and psychological needs of immigrant children as they educate these newcomers.  -Heewon Chang-

Reed-Danahay, Deborah E. (ed). Auto/Ethnography: Rewriting the Self and the Social. New York: Berg, 1997. 277 pp. ISBN 1-85973-975-X (pb), $19.50

This collection of essays reflects the emerging genre of auto/ethnography which merges native anthropology, ethnic autobiography, and autobiographic ethnography.  The editor explains that autoethnography "has a double sense--referring either to the ethnography of one's own group or to autobiographical writing that has ethnographic interest" (p.2).  Nine essays explore diverse ways in which autoethnography has been adopted:  for example, to resist repression from the oppressor; to impose "symbolic" violence on the oppressed; to explore one's own cultural identity; and to self-reflect on the ethnographic process.  This collection of scholarly essays affirms the important presence of autobiographical narration in ethnography. -Heewon Chang-

Multimedia Resources

CD-ROM's

Scholastic.  Diary Maker.   New York:  Scholastic, 1997.

This CD-ROM includes three diaries written by three young authors: Anne Frank, Latoya Hunter, and Zlata Filipovic.  The sample diaries shed light on the joy and pain in the daily lives of a Jew hiding from Nazi persecution (Frank), an immigrant from the West Indies (Hunter), and a war victim from Sarajevo (Filipovic).  Of special interest is the display of the diarists' lives in photos, video clips, and slide shows, and interviews with witnesses of their lives.  The writing component of the program invites users to create their own accounts of daily events.  It is available for both IBM-compatibles and Macintosh computers.   -Heewon Chang-

Videos

Sepinuck, Paula.  Between the Crack.   Philadelphia, PA:  Asian American Youth Association (AAYA) and TOVA, 1993.   33 minutes, color.  (Not rated).  Produced by the Asian American Youth Association (AAYA) and Paula Sepinuck.

As a kind of cathartic and consciousness-raising project for the Asian American Youth Association (AAYA) and TOVA, this video works well as a dramatic vehicle for cultural narration.  The opening written prologue sets the context for the individual stories that follow:  In 1975 the Vietnam War ended, leaving a perception in America that Southeast Asia was at peace.  In Vietnam, however, people continued to feel the effects of the war through the ongoing bombings, struggles with the Communist Regime, and ruined crops resulting in starvation.  At this time Vietnamese and Cambodian people of all ages began to escape, often losing their lives in the effort to flee over mountains, through mine fields, and by sea.  It is through the eyes of four Vietnamese teenagers who were part of this exodus, and who now live in Philadelphia, that this dramatic cultural narration takes place.

Central to the dramatic structure in Between the Crack is a series of personal memories narrated by each of the four teenagers who escaped from Vietnam following the war.  When one speaker gives an account of a particular memory, the other actors facilitate its re-creation.  For example, one speaker sets the tone for the video by describing the difficulty of being "caught between two cultures," finding it "hard to survive between two sets of expectations."  He is followed by a young woman who describes her experience at a trolley stop in Philadelphia:  the driver stares at her and beeps his horn, beckoning for her to come over to him.  She tells the audience that she hates it when people "assume Asian girls are easy."  A similar cultural clash is felt when another speaker dramatically recounts his experience trying to help a five-year-old boy who has fallen off a bike.  As he walks over to where the boy is laying, the boy suddenly leaps to his feet and begins hurling ethnic slurs at him.  The speaker tells us he feels like "something people want to get rid of -- like a cockroach.  That is why I never kill a cockroach." 

Most compelling are the narration of life back in Vietnam, either before or during the exodus.  One speaker recounts poignantly the life he had with his grandmother growing crops and living simply until pressure from the Communists and failing crops forced them to leave.  He describes their bleak choice:  to starve or get shot by the Communists.  "We had to go or we would die, one way or the other."  Another speaker describes losing his father in "the shameful war . . . a war that was uncalled for, unnecessary, and unappreciated."  Here especially the narration takes on a poetic quality, the narrator plaintively recalling having seen so many dead bodies during the bombing of Saigon that "it doesn't even affect me anymore . . . It's like death is an everyday thing."

Perhaps the dramatic highlight of these narration is one woman's recollection of her escape from Vietnam by boat.  She notes that her brothers and sisters no longer remember much about Vietnam because "some things in our lives are too terrible to keep in our heads."  She recalls how her family tried to escape twice.  The first time they were caught by the Vietcong and thrown in jail for a month.  The second time they tried to escape by boat.  She describes a chilling scene where there were pirates everywhere, swimming through the water with knives in their mouths.   They demanded "gold and pretty girls."  The girls put grease on their faces so they wouldn't be captured.  Even so, the pirates took two sisters:   one jumped overboard and died; the other was taken by the pirates to Thailand and "kept for awhile.  We heard she survived."  This narrator describes the pirates taking apart the engine to find gold.  Finding none, they threatened to take the passengers out to the middle of the ocean and leave them there.  She and others survived by jumping overboard and swimming for land.  Monks saved them by giving them food and clothing.

How each speaker processes his or her experience of moving between two cultures is what really makes the cultural narration come alive.  In the words of one speaker:  "When I was in Vietnam I didn't know much about Philadelphia.  I thought America was filled with cowboys . . . but nothing really shocked me in America because we had the courage to cross a big, mighty ocean in a small fishing boat, to sleep on the floor of a refugee camp.  I think it's a joy, a pleasure.  We had to [go] through hell just to be here . . . I think if they let us in, they must have wanted us here.  We belong here."

As a dramatic vehicle for the stories of individuals who are living lives between two cultures, this video works well.  Distracting some from the overall effect, however, are interspersed commentaries from people who either worked on the video or are involved with the supporting organizations.  While their views are interesting, the juxtaposition of these pieces with the dramatic vignettes seems jarring and lessens the impact of the dramatic piece.  This criticism notwithstanding, Between the Crack is a noteworthy amateur project appropriate for a middle or high school classroom, or the home viewer interested in broadening her understanding of what it means to be American.  -Cynthia Tuleja- 

Zemeckis, Robert.  Forrest Gump.  Hollywood, CA:  Paramount Pictures, 1994.  142 minutes, color.   (PG-13).  Produced by Wendy Finerman, Steve Tisch, and Steve Starkey.

This video, winner of six Academy awards, depicts the life of Forrest Gump, a man to whom the viewer is initially introduced as a person who is taunted because of his very limited mental ability. Yet, as Forrest narrates the story of his life, it becomes clear that he is someone whose apparent mental weakness is in sharp contrast to his unwavering strength of character. Faced with awe-inspiring obstacles (or apparent obstacles) in his life, Forrest is someone who overcomes. Beset by a crippling physical problem as a child, Forrest later excels at football when in high school. Given little hope of a future by his elementary school principal, Forrest starts a business as an adult that makes him independently wealthy. Throughout all the challenges and rewards of his life, Forrest maintains a selfless devotion to his childhood sweetheart, Jenny, proving that his strength of character is matched by the depth of his virtue.

This video is appropriate for eighth- through twelfth-grade students, as well as adults. However, there are a couple of scenes that contain partial nudity. These could be edited out without any adverse impact on the story itself. -Cynthia Tuleja-

Websites

An Autobiography of O.A. McFarland
http://www.citilink.com/~bethany/oamcf.html
Written between 1895 and 1903, this journal is a record of Oscar Almon
McFarland's observations and thoughts about life in the 19th century. He tells of his father's service as a Union soldier during the Civil War, his shock upon hearing of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his fright and sorrow as he witnesses the drowning of a playmate as a young child, the painful and tragic death of his 18-year-old son from lockjaw, and the history of the McFarland family, beginning with the immigrant Daniel McFarland of Scotland. The latter part of the journal includes information about O.A. McFarland's work as a school teacher, superintendent of schools, insurance and real estate agent, and newspaper owner and editor.  This website also allows an access to the autobiography of his wife.  This website exemplifies a great way in which one's family history can be documented and preserved.  -Heewon Chang-

Autobiography
http://www.aca.vt.edu/cowl/WAC/autobiography.htm
This site hyperlinks the cooperative on-line writing lab (COWL) which serves students and faculty at Bluefield, Milligan, and Virginia Intermont colleges.  This site provides a guideline for autobiography writing. -Heewon Chang-

Autobiography
http://www.mtsu.edu/~dlavery/abind.htm
This website provides a list of autobiographies (under "A Checklist"), Scholarly essays on autobiography, a gallery of self-portraits, and a link to an electronic journal entitled "Life Writing."  This site contains hyperlinks to "A Selection of Quotations on Autobiography," "Essays on Autobiography by David Lavery," "Essays on Autobiography," "Autobiographical Criticism: A Bibliography" and others.  The list of autobiographies includes over 200 bibliographic entries (although some do not provide full bibliographic information). -Heewon Chang-

Latino Autobiography Forum
http://www.amherst.edu/~adhankow/latino.html
This site compiles autobiographic essays by students who took Professor Ilan Stavans' course, entitled, "A Journey through Hispanic Culture in the United States, from 1532 to the Present, through the Autobiographical 'I' (i.e., eye)" at Amherst College.  The course analyzes important figures of Mexican-American, Cuban-American, Dominican, and Puerto Rican descent, as well as others with roots south of the Rio Grande.   These figures include, for example, the explorer Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and the write Richard Rodriguez.  The autobiographical format provides a rich forum for the historical and artistic context of these historic and contemporary figures. -Heewon Chang-

My Story
http://www.mysterywriter.com/home.htm
The website describes the computer software called My Story, which allows users to create their own autobiography and produce it in book format in a regular printer.  (EMME has not tested the software and is not responsible for the quality of the content.)  -Heewon Chang-

Self-Publishing and Autobiography Service -- Lifestyles Press
http://www.lifestylespress.com/
This website of a self-publishing press provides information on how to publish and market one's life story, and lists 40 such stories published by the press.  The stories come from ordinary people and the drama that is closest to them, including life struggles with terminal illnesses, journeys of faith, adventure stories, and experiences in war.  The synopses of these stories remind us that there are many worthy stories to be told and heard, even from "ordinary people." -Heewon Chang-

Stories of Young Indian Americans
http://www.phillynews.com/inquirer/99/Apr/15/magazine/ABCD15.htm
This article describes how the Indian American community in
Philadelphia and across the United States is coming to terms with their ethnic
heritage and their role as Americans.  Several first-person accounts inserted in this article shed light on these young people's bicultural struggles. -Heewon Chang-

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