A thoughtful memoir that makes for engaging reading about cultural differences.
A debut memoir about a young man coping with an abrupt move between two very different cultures.
Long was born in the Philippines to a loving mother and a father who didn’t care to be in his life. He spent much of his childhood in the fishing village of Alumnos, raised by his grandmother Rufina Cabreros; his mother and American stepfather moved to California and saved money to bring him over. Long formed a deep bond with Rufina as the two eked out an existence in the poor but deeply communal village. When he finally arrived in Fontana, California, in 1975, at age 15, he struggled with being separated from his beloved grandmother. He also had trouble faking his way through public school while barely understanding English and trying to understand the deep differences between Filipino and American social norms. Long married his girlfriend after she became pregnant; after being expelled from high school for fighting, he enrolled in the U.S. Army to support his new family. The ensuing years were a roller coaster of highs and lows, Long writes, as the young couple dealt with financial issues and her increasingly severe depression and substance abuse. After the marriage finally collapsed, Long resolved to pursue an education and get ahead in the home equity loan business, which forced him to confront even more cultural differences. The author writes eloquently about how Filipino ideals shaped his youthful experience in America. For example, he tells of how his deeply traditional commitment to family drew out the collapse of his own marriage but also reminded him of the deep love between his grandparents. His memories of his childhood are particularly vivid; his descriptions of his small Filipino community, his growing awareness of the many traps of poverty, his grandmother’s die-hard commitment to him, and his volatile uncles will all stick in readers’ memories. The latter third of the book, describing Long’s life after his divorce, isn’t quite as compelling, however.
A thoughtful memoir that makes for engaging reading about cultural differences.Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-62137-796-2
Page Count: 274
Publisher: Virtualbookworm.com Publishing
Review Posted Online: Dec. 22, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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