Cultural comparisons: Auma's Long Run, You Bring the Distant Near, and Piecing Me Together

Young adult novels about kids from different cultures lend themselves to teaching the writing of comparison contrast essays.  Depending on the students’ level of sophistication, the essay can range from a simple four paragraph essay to a fully developed paper, where each topic is explored in great detail. As students are reading their novel, they should be noting similarities and differences between their own culture and the culture represented in the book. This month I am recommending three books that would lend themselves to this project. Auma's Long Run by Ecabeth Odhiambo chronicles the story of a young girl growing up during the AIDS crisis in Kenya.  You Bring the Distant Near by Mitali Perkins is a multi-generational story that captures the immigrant experience of an Indian-American family. Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson explores the conflicts felt by an African America girl who is a scholarship student at an elite private school in Portland. 

Set in a Kenyan Village during the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s,  Auma's Long Run is about a 13-year-old track star, who dreams of becoming a doctor.  After her parents die of the affliction, Auma is left with the responsibility of caring for her family.  Feeding her siblings and grandmother becomes more important than track practice and good grades, even though she is hoping to get a track scholarship to continue her education and follow her dreams.  The author draws from her own experiences of growing up in Kenya at the beginning of the AIDS crisis, in this poignant exploration of a girl conflicted between family responsibilities and her desire to find a cure for the disease that is killing her people. 

Told in alternating voices over three generations, You Bring the Distant Near follows the immigration of the Das family from Ghana to London to NYC in the 1970s.  Tara and Sonia are excited to embrace the American way of life, whereas their mother Ranee has traditional Indian expectations of her daughters.  However, Tara's interest in acting and Sonia's social activism are encouraged by their father. Twenty years later Tara is a Bollywood star and Sonia is a New York reporter married to her African American high school love.  Their daughters Anna and Chantal, echo their mothers' ideals and ultimately bring their grandmother around to a new way of thinking.  Nominated for the 2017 National Book Award for Young People's Literature, this heart-warming story is inspired by the author's own immigrant experience. 

In Piecing Me Together Jade, an African American scholarship student at a private high school in Portland, aspires to be invited on a study abroad week to use her Spanish skills. Instead, she is invited to join Woman to Woman, a mentor-ship program for poor black girls. Jade's mentor Maxine is black, but she is from a wealthy family and is just looking to pad her resume. Although Jade is grateful for the opportunities she receives, she is also resentful that she is stereotyped as  the "at-risk girl from a bad neighborhood." Through her collage art Jade is able to express her reflections on the complexities of race and gender, as well as her loyalty to her community and family, and bridge the gap between her and Maxine.  In short poetic chapters, preceded by a related Spanish word or phrase, this thought-provoking novel inspires discussion and consideration of the issues of race and privilege in a prejudiced world.