A review by emily_m_green
Almost American Girl by Robin Ha

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

 Almost American Girl, a graphic memoir by Robin Ha, tells the story of Chuna, a fourteen-year-old girl who grew up in Seoul, South Korea. She has her school, friends, routines, and her home. When Chuna’s mother tells her that they will be going on vacation to the United States, she thinks little of it, packing her suitcase and preparing for a short visit. What Chuna does not know is that this is not just a visit, but an opportunity to spend time with an American man with whom her mother has been romantically involved, and that the pair would stay in America if all went well. And all went well. 

Without notice, Chuna is now living in the USA, with a whole stepfamily, and none of her things, friends, or anything familiar. Except her mother. 

What Chuna discovers is prejudice, confusion, and a school system that is not prepared for her and not able to prepare her--as well as a stepfamily that is not so interested in making her feel welcome. 

As a graphic memoir, this is based on the very real Robin Ha’s experience of moving to the United States. I have tried to imagine what it might be like to move to a new country without warning, especially one with such a distinctly different culture and language. I am not sure that I would have done as well as Ha describes, even as she details difficulties, struggles, and anger at her mother. There are so many elements that, having only lived in the United States with brief stays outside of the country, I would not have considered. 

One of the most interesting pieces to Chuna’s story (she eventually chooses Robin as her American name) is her mother’s history. Being an unmarried mother caused many difficulties for her, and so she determined that she would be financially independent and protect her daughter in any way that she could. She saved up money until she was able to purchase her own salon and support her daughter. Still, she could not protect her or her daughter from the judgment of others. 

What Robin learns later is that the USA offers opportunities for women that are not available in South Korea. She also discovers drawing comics and eventually finds her people. 

Would I teach this book? Emphatically, yes. I'm a big fan of graphic memoirs, and I believe that they tell a story in a way that no other medium can. The facial expressions, the visual details, and the color and shading enhance and help communicate what it is like to live someone’s life. The collaboration between the words and the pictures helps to emphasize emotions and judgements in a way that either, alone, could not. For example, on page 60, which depicts Robin in a spotlight, uncomfortably fidgeting her hands and thinking “Look normal” over and over again. Together, they communicate the pain of trying to be normal and the extreme effort that ultimately prevents one from looking normal 

The story that is important to hear is one of a normal teenager, which Robin is, and the emotional upheaval of moving to the United States. I have not heard it said in a long time, thank goodness, but when I was growing up, people used to say things like, “You’re in America, speak English” and “If you don’t like it, go back to where you came from.” The beauty of teaching Almost American Girl is that it explains the ridiculousness of those statements and points them out for what they are: unthinking, unsympathetic, and unimaginative thoughts of someone who has no idea what being an immigrant is like. Or, to borrow some language from the book, words from people acting like turds. 

I also like teaching graphic novels because the reading feels easier for students, like less heavy lifting. And yet, they can get much of the same cultural understanding that they would from a prose memoir. Not that I am opposed to heavy mental lifting, but I do appreciate a balance. And it would be silly to say that graphic novels are not mental heavy lifting--we are just tricked because our brains see pictures and think that we’ve gotten off easy. However, we are still decoding and deciphering and fitting images and language, analyzing and inferring. Or “meaning making” as they like to call it in the teaching biz. 

To my educator peeps, if you have not yet taught a graphic novel, I strongly encourage you to consider it.