Real Americans: A novel

This book hit me hard.

Rachel is careful to develop the characters, but the trick is she unfolds the story of each character over the book. In my own experience, I did not feel close to any of the characters until I got to the section about Mei. The idea of Real Americans is a discussion in itself. The book tiptoed into science fiction and incorporated history with love, passion, and sadness. I wanted to know Lily more. She was a character I think I most relate to and I wanted more from her. Nick is a compilation of the dreams of his grandparents and parents. But it is not all roses. This book sticks with me, but not sure why? I will be reading more of Khong to see what her style of writing does to draw the reader in.

4.5 so fucking good, great one liners, deep observations, just failed to deliver on some promises early in the book but still very good

Rachel Khong's "Real Americans" is a multigenerational exploration of an immigrant family's journey from new arrivals towards a literal mutation of their fully assimilated selves. Khong leverages historical fiction with a bit of magical realism and science fiction to create a compelling and challenging narrative about what it means to be American. I deeply resonated with this novel, being a first-generation American in my own family. Like our main characters, I can understand what it means to be stuck between two worlds. You never truly belong to a singular culture, language, traditions, or mores. The plot devices and character arcs that Khong employs create a story that wrestles with the construct of society and how it shapes our experiences. Khong is examining in many ways what roles nature and nurture play in defining identity and belonging. In doing so, she also explores different ways that people are "passing" as another persona in society. One particular experience is a type of passing we can trace down to the DNA. The navigation of society by our core characters helps us also peer deeply into the repressed histories of their immigrant parents. This book is wonderfully paced and offers unexpected plot turns coupled with endearing character development. In the end, Khong offers us a moral observation that is timeless. Khong demonstrates for us in the end that we repeat mistakes from one generation to the next through the very act of trying so hard not to repeat them.

Told by 3 characters. Very informative about Chinese Cultural Revolution.