Exile: Rejecting America and Finding the World

by Belén Fernández

Che Guevara left Argentina at 22. At 21, Belén Fernández left the U.S. and didn’t look back. Alone, far off the beaten path in places like Syria and Tajikstan, she reflects on what it means to be an American in a largely American-made mess of a world.

After growing up in Washington, D.C. and Texas, and then attending Columbia University in New York, Belén Fernández ended up in a state of self-imposed exile from the United States. From trekking—through Europe, the Middle East, Morocco, and Latin America—to packing avocados in southern Spain, to close encounters with a variety of unpredictable men, to witnessing the violent aftermath of the 2009 coup in Honduras, the international travel allowed her by an American passport has, ironically, given her a direct view of the devastating consequences of U.S. machinations worldwide. For some years Fernández survived thanks to the generosity of strangers who picked her up hitchhiking, fed her, and offered accommodations; then she discovered people would pay her for her powerful, unfiltered journalism, enabling—as of the present moment—continued survival.

In just a few short years of publishing her observations on world politics and writing from places as varied as Lebanon, Italy, Uzbekistan, Syria, Mexico, Turkey, Honduras, and Iran, Belén Fernández has established herself as a one of the most trenchant observers of America’s interventions around the world, following in the footsteps of great foreign correspondents such as Martha Gellhorn and Susan Sontag.

Illustrated with black-and-white photo

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel, Memoir, Female Authors, Politics, Essays

137 pages, Paperback

First published September 3, 2019

Reviews

[Emily Davies (libraryofcalliope) · Rating 3 out of 5]

“𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘐 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥’𝘴 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦’𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴.”
This was my first book from @leftbookclub! I don’t read a lot of travel writing but signing up for the subscription was all part of helping me read a wider range of non fiction I might not ordinarily pick up. This book was really interesting and engagingly written. Fernández is an American who writes about her experiences as an American travelling abroad and confronting the negative impact that the USA has had, countering the notion of American exceptionalism, considering and scrutinising the political situations of places like Lebanon and Turkey, all while acknowledging the privilege required to travel in the way that she has done and the implications of a US passport. She doesn’t make generalisations about “the people” of the places she visited which had always put me off travel writing before and she writes with humour but also the appropriate sincerity when required. It’s not my preferred genre of non fiction, but this was a good book that I enjoyed.

[Fionn McGorry · Rating 2 out of 5]

While interesting and informative, not least because of the footnotes, the overriding sentiment was one of loathing of the author. She is immensely self-righteous and, while her opinions are absolutely correct, insists on telling us how correct she is at every opportunity. What was the point of this book?

[Celina · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have enjoyed some of the author’s journalism, but this wasn’t good. It’s not her far-left analysis—I have a few quibbles there but she’s basically right on most of it. She’s got an agenda on Thomas Friedman, but why shouldn’t she, really. The writing is just not good. The personal stories tend too much to, we met a guy and he gave us stuff/a place to stay, but then he got grabby and we had to flee, tee hee! The author thinks awfully highly of herself and has a bad habit of making world events about her:

“And as it turns out, the very homeland from which I disentangled myself of my own free will has played no small role in precluding the attainment of a Kurdish homeland, not to mention more basic goals. At the same time, and in keeping with established tradition, the US has been complicit in the uprooting of masses of people who, unlike me, haven't asked to be uprooted."

It got better toward the end when she got more journalistic. I’ll stick to following her work in Al Jazeera.

[Jeffrey Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most important book from a former "insider" now "outsider" looking in and sharing both her take, and much of the people she's encountered take, on certain truths and reflections. The author doesn't hide her disdain, and, courageously, defends her positions with copious research and notes. Hers is a nuanced approach, not the typical B&W, us good, them bad ideology employed by those who don't really have a clue. Though shocking at times, I laughed often at her wry wit and matter-of-fact commentary. Obviously, many people will hate this book because it breaks down so many of illusions they hold so dear. Oh well. The rest of us will either learn something or be reminded of our own convictions and beliefs in books like this that expose an aimless and corrupt version of reality that needs to go away fast. Maybe there is a better world out there. Somewhere.

[Tony · Rating 1 out of 5]

Pure garbage.

[Brittany Mishra · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting book. Belen has wonderful insight into our world affairs and how the US and corporations have played a huge role in the misery of many other countries. She also touches upon other countries such as Italy, Germany, and Turkey who may have a more defined culture than the US, but who, nonetheless, exploit, discriminate, and murder people to their own benefit. There are issues with this book. There is not a lot of focus. Belen tries to fit so much into this small book that all of the chapters seem rushed, tangential, and at times off topic. Instead of chapter length, each country should have had a book length background and author explanation. It is clear that Belen has travelled the world and knows her past and current events, but the depth that she provided needed more space to allow the reader time to digest the footnotes, figures, and fact filled paragraphs.

[Chris Lovejoy]

A brief and scattershot* travelogue to match my current mood as another US president tries to start another pointless war, this time with Iran. Fernández visits a number of countries that according to American myth are either way too dangerous or hostile to Americans, hitch-hikes everywhere and drinks a lot of wine, and expounds upon two main narratives: first, that these places are dangerous because America made them that way with our obnoxious foreign policy and second, that the people living there don't hate us. In fact they are very much like us and seem to want to like us, if only our government would stop bombing them, sanctioning them, and selling weapons to local criminals. Oh, and she bags on Thomas Friedman a lot, which is always a good thing.

*extensively footnoted however

[Daniel Edwards · Rating 2 out of 5]

More accurate title should be "Reviled: Revolted by America and Finding the Third World"