Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

In searching for books to recommend here, I discovered Amazon has a whole category called Emigration and Immigration.

Others I've read recently include Americanah and Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet.

I am personally hoping Brandon Stanton releases a book from his trip to meet Syrian refugees which he chronicled in Humans of New York.

As someone who has lived far away from her home country for years, I love this prompt.

I strongly recommend The Sympathizer, which may have been the best book I read this past year. (I read the paperback, but a friend raved about the audiobook version, read by Francois Chau.)

Other suggestions I've liked or loved:
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
Middlesex
My New American Life
Girl in Translation
How the García Girls Lost Their Accents
The Namesake

I'm thinking about reading The Expatriates or The Good Immigrant or A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers

Wow, The Good Immigrant looks amazing. Thanks, Anna. I just added it to my TBR.

I highly recommend Behold the Dreamers. It's about Cameroonian immigrants trying to make a life for themselves in NYC.

I'm really interested to read a book about refugees. I hope to find a good, recent publication on it.

Has anyone read Forever?

One I've read is A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

I've been meaning to read Shanghai Girls for some time, and it seems to fit this prompt. The two main characters are sisters from Shanghai who must marry Americans to repay their fathers debts during WWII.

With everything happening in the world right now, I really love this prompt. Can anyone suggest any current immigrant/refugee stories? Particularly focused on the conflict in Syria?

Lindi wrote: "With everything happening in the world right now, I really love this prompt. Can anyone suggest any current immigrant/refugee stories? Particularly focused on the conflict in Syria? "

I don't know about Syrian stories, specifically, but When the Moon is Low, published in 2015, talks about Afghan migrants to Europe and seems very current. (I haven't actually read it; it's just on my TBR.)

I've got We Need New Names penciled in for this one.

I also have "How the Garcia Girls ..." on my TBR. so that's another possibility for me.

I've found that I need to be careful when browsing goodreads lists for this category, because often a book about American-born people of a certain ethnicity gets lumped in with a book about immigrants. For example, I don't think "The House on Mango Street" is about immigrants, but I see it on these lists.

I'm looking at maybe reading Brooklyn.

I've read and would recommend both Americanah and The Namesake. One that has been on my TBR for awhile that I might choose is Bread Givers, but after reading about The Good Immigrant, I might do that. (Thanks, Anna!)

Little Bee

My book club tends to have lots of books around this topic so I'll hold off on picking this one.

Booklover wrote: "Has anyone read Forever?"

No, but it looks very good. Just added it to my list. :)

If anyone is looking for suggestions I just finished the ship of brides by Jojo Moyes which was great. Angela's ashes by frank mccourt is also fantastic.

When the Moon is Low

I have heard good things about Salt to the Sea. This could also work for a book set in wartime.

White Pearl and I by Svetlana Kim

Possibilities:

The Jungle or use this for the "food" category
My Ántonia
The Joy Luck Club or use for anther "ethnicity"

I'm using the first for "food" and I've read the other two. As a genealogist I'm interested in my Irish ancestors so

Irish Immigrants in America

Does O Pioneers! work for this task? I find references to the main character belonging to an immigrant family, but it's not clear if she herself was born in Sweden or after the family came to the US.

I''ve just read this book. The main character remembers having seen her father working at a shipyard in Stockholm. So yes, she was born in Sweden, and several other characters in the books were born in Europe too.

Helene wrote: "I''ve just read this book. The main character remembers having seen her father working at a shipyard in Stockholm. So yes, she was born in Sweden, and several other characters in the books were bor..."

Ah, good to know, thanks!

I agree with Behold the Dreamers. Definitely a good read for this prompt.

Technically, Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow works for this. Hamilton immigrated to the US as a teenager. I have a lot of books I can use in this category, though, including some that have been listed already like Brooklyn, Middlesex, Girl in Translation, Americanah, and Little Bee.

The Hundred-Foot Journey is a fun one about an Indian family that immigrates to Europe, for those unfamiliar with the movie. For those who do know the movie, the book is quite different but I really enjoyed it. Personally I think this one could be used for the food category, too, since food features heavily into everything they do, but that may be a stretch for some people.

East of the Sun is about three women who immigrate to Bombay. I haven't read it, but I have it and it is an option, particularly if you like longer reads.

I probably have others, too, but I don't feel up to digging for them just now.

Songs of a War Boy

I definitely recommend American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot

I've been a Craig Ferguson fan for years, and truly LOVED this book. I have it in print as well as audio (read by Craig himself). While much of the book relates to his struggles with addiction, it is all related to his desire to become an American citizen from a young age.

I recently re-listened just to remind myself what America is supposed to be after this trash-fire of a year.

He has a way of talking about America that's both vaguely rose-colored, but also still realistic.

Anyway, not what you might consider a traditional immigrant/immigration book, but still qualifies I think.

Pretty sure The Golem and the Jinni would be good for this one. And it's a great book too.

The Happiest Refugee by Anh Do is a wonderful story.

http://www.booktopia.com.au/the-happi...

In the Country We Love: My Family Divided by Diane Guerrero.
The Middle of Everywhere: Helping Refugees Enter the American Community by Mary Pipher.

Anna wrote: "As someone who has lived far away from her home country for years, I love this prompt.

I strongly recommend The Sympathizer, which may have been the best book I read this past yea..."

We have the same tastes in books! Junot Díaz forever changed me with his words. I literally cried after reading each of his books. I think everyone can relate in some form or fashion. The Sympathizer has been on my list for a few months, I will choose this one based on your recommendation! Thank you :)

I'm going with The Year of the Runaways as I meant to read it last year and never got round to it.

Cutting for stone by Abraham Verghese. Is this suitable for this category?

I have started to read Milchfrau in Ottakring: Tagebuch aus den dreißiger Jahren for the challenge. I know I should start with the regular list first, but we are reading this in the book club and it fits perfectly in this category.

Goodreads was doing a book giveaway for A Hope More Powerful Than the Sea: One Refugee's Incredible Story of Love, Loss, and Survival that would work for this category.

Great suggestions here. I am starting a YA one called _Turtles in Oman_ which is good. This also makes me think of _The Shoemakers Wife_ which is a lightish look at Italians moving to Minnesota.

Would The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures count?

From Immigrant to Inventor
''...the lifelong journey of a boy from rural Serbia, from a town so tiny it appeared on no maps, who became one of the greatest scientists of the early 20th century, changing the lives of people the world over with his technological innovations-he invented the therapeutic X-ray and made telephone communications practical and inexpensive-and helping to invent the modern world we know today.
First published in 1922, Pupin's autobiography won the Pulitzer Prize in 1924...''

I'm not sure where I'm going for the challenge, but Honour by Elif Shafak is a phenomenal book, well outside of my usual comfort zone. I would recommend it to anyone.

I would totally recommend "The book of Unknown Amercians", by Cristina Henriquez
I read it last year and loved it, it can be sad but full of hope, it shows a side of things that, for non-immigrants or people who have never lived in a different country, specially one where the language was a huge barrier, is worth reading about.

[bookcover:Diz que és um Deles is a book that can fit in this category?

My Antonia is lovely but I read it fairly recently. I've been meaning to read Ragtime so that's mine.

Can anyone recommend Salt to the Sea or Golden Hill for this challenge prompt?

Salt to the Sea is a good choice for this prompt.

Emanuel wrote: "[bookcover:Diz que és um Deles is a book that can fit in this category?"

I might. I haven't read it but one of the stories could work. If not perhaps you could use it for difficult topic, person of color, set during wartime, or country you've never visited? Unless you've been to Nigeria.

Tami wrote: "Salt to the Sea is a good choice for this prompt."

Thanks, Tami.

I haven't chosen a book for this one yet. I keep seeing so many interesting possibilities.

The Hundred-Year Walk: An Armenian Odyssey

The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen

Lindi wrote: "With everything happening in the world right now, I really love this prompt. Can anyone suggest any current immigrant/refugee stories? Particularly focused on the conflict in Syria? "

I just saw on facebook Neil Gaiman recommend A Hope More Powerful than the Sea

I read In the Country We Love: My Family Divided by Diane Guerrero. It is a memoir about growing up the child of undocumented immigrants, including living without her parents after they have been deported. A large part of the book also deals with how the events of the author's childhood affected her adult life and mental health. It is an important story to tell, and I am glad she got to tell it herself.

Literary Hub has a list of 15 Works of Contemporary Literature By and About Refugees

This might be helpful...

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/01/30...

hey guys, do you think The Martian will fit in this category? :)