26. I Hate English!

Ok, so obviously I myself don't hate English, but Mei Mei does. She has just moved with her family from Hong Kong to New York against her will. She sees nothing in common with anyone, and especially can't understand the alien language of English.

"Such a lonely language. Each letter stands alone and makes its own noise. Not like Chinese."

Mei Mei can't help but compare everything in her new life to what it used to be, missing her old life. She refuses to speak or work in English, unwilling to transition into a life in the United States. 

Having worked with many students who face the challenge of acculturation, Levine's (1989) portrayal is pretty accurate. While the majority of students welcome the new changes and surprises of the new culture, some just can't see themselves letting go of their past. 

This is portrayed so brilliantly in the line:

"Mei Mei didn't want to hear any more. She didn't want English to have words that she didn't know in Chinese."

Mei Mei fears that she is going to become a whole new person in New York who cannot connect to her past. In the end, though, with the help of a patient teacher, she realizes that she can speak both languages and incorporate both cultures into her identity. She doesn't have to choose one or the other.

The fear of assimilating and losing oneself is real for many immigrants-- people complain about why they don't speak the language or why they keep to themselves, but what they don't realize is the deep, internalized struggle of how to hold on to one's identity. This book does a great job of making that feeling understandable for students, especially for those who have faced the challenge before. 

The only complaint I have, and it just might be me being a little overly sensitive, was with one statement said by the white teacher helping her,

"I don't really think you want to learn. And that's too bad. Because in America almost everything happens in English. Don't you want to go to an American movie? Don't you want to ask for pizza?"

It seemed a little contradictory to the story's main idea that Mei Mei learns to think, speak, and live in both worlds. Regardless, I will still read this to my class.

Artistically, Steve Bjorkman uses a cartoon-like style to create simple illustrations. His pen-and ink sketches are illuminated by a palette of soft watercolors. The slightly shaded in watercolor (as opposed to meticulously colored) give the illustrations a dream-like quality, as we experience life through the complicated thoughts and feelings of Mei Mei. The illustrations show the contexts that Mei Mei is in with many details, helping us understand her world. Bjorkman effectively shows her mood by the expression in her eyes and face. Even though he is not an insider to the Chinese culture, he does a fairly good job of depicting the people, scenes, and Chinese characters accurately.