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Beautiful Country

Autor*innen

Qian Wang

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This memoir offers a heartrending and courageous account of growing up undocumented in America. Qian Julie Wang recounts her experiences after immigrating from China to New York City in 1994. The term "beautiful country" contrasts sharply with her reality, as she faces fear and poverty after being uprooted from her happy childhood in China. Initially unable to speak English, Qian feels isolated and is placed in special education classes, enduring humiliation from teachers and classmates due to her struggles with hunger and exhaustion. She confronts racism and grapples with her family's status as educated elites in China, while working alongside her mother in Chinatown sweatshops. Survival rules are ingrained in her: run from policemen, claim to be born in America, and obey to avoid separation from her family. Understanding the emotional toll on her parents, Qian strives to uplift them and mediate their arguments, believing her goodness can keep the family united. Through unsentimental prose, Wang captures the cruelty of America's immigration system while highlighting small moments of joy—like their first slice of pizza and treasure hunts in Brooklyn's trash. This powerful narrative is a poignant exploration of resilience in a hostile environment from a remarkable new voice.