Ibi Zoboi holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Her novel American Street was a National Book Award finalist and a New York Times Notable Book. She is also the author of Pride and My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich, a New York Times bestseller. She is the editor of the anthology Black Enough. Born in Haiti and raised in New York City, she now lives in New Jersey with her husband and their three children. You can find her online at www.ibizoboi.net. You can find more of my reviews of books from TIME's Best YA Books of All Time here.
In this stunning debut novel, Pushcart-nominated author Ibi Zoboi draws on her own experience as a young Haitian immigrant, infusing this lyrical exploration of America with magical realism and voudou culture. On the corner of American Street and Joy Road, Fabiola Toussaint thought she would finally find une belle vie—a good life. But after they leave Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Fabiola's mother is detained by U.S. immigration, leaving Fabiola to navigate her loud American cousins, Chantal, Donna, and Princess; the grittiness of Detroit's west side; a new school; and a surprising romance, all on her own. Just as she finds her footing in this strange new world, a dangerous proposition presents itself, and Fabiola soon realizes that freedom comes at a cost. Trapped at the crossroads of an impossible choice, will she pay the price for the American dream?
The story of this book is definitely gritty—Fabiola (nicknamed Fabulous or Fab) has immigrated from Haiti to Detroit, but her mother was detained by US Immigration in New York. Having to move forward without her, Fabiola enters the world of America on her own, having to make sense of high school culture, her cousins' antics, and boys more-or-less on her own. Fabiola dives right into the culture of Detroit, some of which are things she recognized from Haiti, and other things of which are completely foreign to her. Zoboi writes this culture shock in a sympathetic way, to the point where even I was wondering how America had reached some of these points.
We learn early on that the novel is named after the street that Fabiola's family lives on in Detroit, the house of which is at the intersection of American Street and Joy Road. What I loved most about this book is its ability to harken back to these images, and what they mean. The meaning the image of this intersection provokes is so powerful, and only gains more power as Fabiola uncovers more and more about her new life. And the wonderful thing is, this is just one of the images that Zoboi uses to provoke and tease out meaning.
Some of the other images come from phrases or old "visions" that are first introduced through short, bite-sized stories that are scattered throughout the rest of the book. These moments are not narrated by Fabiola, but by other characters, such as Fabiola's cousins, friends, and enemies. One of my favorite of these short stories is narrated by the house that Fabiola's family lives in. It introduces some powerful images that are called back to in the later scenes of the novel, and is what helps create that "wow, this is brilliant" feeling when you read it.
Lastly, I enjoyed the inclusion of Fabiola's Vodou practices. Zoboi is able to show many immigrant experiences, through the inclusion of other characters' stories, but we really get to focus on Fabiola's. She holds onto this practice she and her mother did every night, in order to give her strength during the times when she's without her mother. This inclusion also helps to create a sort-of magical realism about the novel as a whole. It's difficult to explain, but it's worth mentioning how Zoboi is able to introduce elements of unreality into this novel. The book simply would not be the same without it.
I really enjoyed American Street, and will continue reading my way through TIME's other Top YA selections. You can find Zoboi online at www.ibizoboi.net. You can find more of my reviews of books from TIME's Best YA Books of All Time here.
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
Comments
Post a Comment