I appreciated this as my first experience with Tyler’s special voice and genius at portraying the rhythms and dynamics of American domestic life. The tale involves a comparison of two Baltimore families who adopt Korean toddler girls, one a “typical” American clan and the other second generation Iranians.

At the arrival of the babies at the airport, the cultural differences in response to the event set the stage for the rest of the book. Whereas the Donaldsons celebrate the arrival with a clan of dozens and recordings by multiple videocams, the Yazdans are more matter-of-fact in participating with only the young spouses and the husband’s mother Maryam. When the anniversary of their child’s arrival comes about, the big hearted Donaldson’s remember the Yazdans and invite them to a lavish “arrival party”. The story follows the development of a deep friendship between the two couples and parts of their extended families over about a decade, covering the period after the Iranian hostage crisis to the years after 9-11.

But the story has almost no focus on politics. It is more about the sense of what it personally takes to feel a part of American culture. Cultural differences and misunderstandings emerge and are largely surmounted. Tyler loves her characters and gardens their development with care. Some readers may be frequently bored with the sparse plot elements in favor of everyday family issues. For example, there is about a 50 page section on how the Donaldsons handled the weaning of their daughter from her pacifier addiction, which ends with a party in which all the family members send the dozens of pacifiers off to a contrived fairy by balloons.

The heart of Maryam is effectively the heart of the story. After nearly four decades of struggling to “be” an American and to achieve self-reliance in her widowhood, her identity remains tied up with her foreignness, and she is very reticent to follow through on her affections for elder Dave in the Donaldson clan. These two quotes capture the essence of her quandary:

You can start to believe that your life is defined by your foreignness. You think everything would be different if only you belonged. ‘If only I were back home,’ you say, and you forget that you wouldn’t belong there either, after all these years. It wouldn’t be home at all anymore.

Americans are all larger than life. You think that if you keep company with them you will be larger too, but then you see that they’re making you shrink; they’re expanding and edging you out. I could feel myself slipping away.

288 pages of absolutely no story, boring characters and just poor writing. The emphasis of this novel is on subtlety, if by that you mean that nothing actually happens then yes, that would be an accurate description.
Seriously, I finished each chapter and thought to myself: "so what actually happened there?" And the answer is nothing. This is a very boring book, I wasted a painful few weeks of my life trying to drag myself through it, I have to finish a book once I start it but I very nearly gave up with this one.
There are no interesting characters, not one I can feel any kind of endearing emotion towards... I always try to find something good to say about a novel, even the ones I really didn't like, but I can't think of anything good to say about this. I hated it.

Дві родини, які живуть в передмісті Балтимора. Одна — американська, інша — вихідці з Ірану. Обидві родини в один день зустрічають літак, яким прилітають дві дівчинки з Кореї, яких ці родини вдочерили. Познайомились родини в аеропорту. І попри розбіжності у світогляді, поглядів на виховання дітей, родинні історії, ці дві сімʼї дружать.

Мені подобаються книги про досвід імігрантів, зокрема, іммігрантів в Америці. Мимоволі порівнюю як було у героїв книг і як було/є у мене.

Книга легенька, без особливо драматизму — для перемикання між складнішими сюжетами саме те. Ще хочу прочитати “Breathing Lessons”, за яку авторка отримала Пулітцерівську премію.

Definitely an argument to be made that this is one of Anne Tyler's best (her GOAT?), and certainly one of her most ambitious, books. First read this in November 2007, apparently! It holds up over time. I can see myself telling my friends, if you have to read one Anne Tyler novel, you won't go wrong with this one.

«Удочеряя Америку» - повествование о двух семьях (коренные американцы и иранские иммигранты), чьи жизни пересеклись с удочерением девочек из Кореи. Встретившись в аэропорту, они стали друзьями, и вся книга рассказывает о перепетиях их судеб на протяжении нескольких лет.
В книге есть очень яркое событие в самом начале (встреча удочеренных девочек с семьями), а после него история обретает плавность, неспешность. Без особых эмоциональных всплесков, книга очень искренне рассказывает о простых житейских радостях и горестях. Родственники, семейные праздники, болезни и уход близких людей, теплота и сердечность, мудрость и умение принимать других людей и целые культуры.
На первый взгляд, «Удочеряя Америку» - книга очень простая, но, как по мне, она об очень многом действительно важном. И хотя лично я люблю более масштабные и драматичные произведения, это, безусловно, приятная книга, уютная и милая, вызывающая только положительные эмоции.

Il romanzo inizia con l'arrivo di due bimbe coreane adottate da due famiglie, una americana, l'altra di origini iraniane. Da questo incontro nasce l'amicizia tra i due clan. Da lì il romanzo si snoda tra dialoghi ricchi di comicità, ricorrenze, feste di compleanni e anniversari più o meno sentiti e poco condivisi, imbarazzi familiari derivanti da radici culturali così diverse come quelle mediorientali e quelle degli americani, “maniaci della logica”. In mezzo ci sono nuove adozioni (arriva una sorellina cinese), i traslochi di casa, l’asilo e l’educazione di Jin-Ho e Susan e, anche, la nascita di un’inattesa, sorprendente storia d'amore tra l’altera nonna iraniana e il papà di Bitsy Donaldson, Dave, che non cesserà di turbare i rapporti tra i due clan.
L'autrice ti fa immergere, con vibrante realismo, nel mondo di due famiglie: ne tratteggia la vita quotidiana, il rapporto fra genitori e figli, i piccoli attriti, i sentimenti, le frustrazioni e i drammi. E oltre a offrire uno spaccato assolutamente attuale sul tema dell'integrazione, fa sentire i suoi personaggi così veri e vicini che è impossibile non soffrire e gioire con loro.

I've had a couple of Anne Tyler novels on my shelf for over 20 years. However, I have never been able to get past the first few pages. There is something about the writing that is incredibly dull. At first I thought "Digging to America" was going to be another unread Anne Tyler but I persisted through the first chapter (the point at which I have normally given up) and it began to improve. Like others, I thought some of the characters, particularly Bitsy, were awful. I also didn't like the chapter where Bitsy threw a "binky" party, to encourage/force her 2nd adopted daughter to give up her pacifiers (or "dummies" as we call them in Australia). I would have given that chapter the chop if I were the editor. However, I was interested enough in Maryam, and later in Maryam and Dave's relationship to keep reading. I actually thought that the ending was really well done and was quite touching, one of the few satisfying endings of all that I have read recently. It has only taken me one afternoon staying inside out of the hot weather to complete this novel, so I feel as if I have overcome a personal Anne Tyler hurdle.

INCONTRI



Al centro dell’attenzione di Anne Tyler è ancora una volta la famiglia. Non tanto una famiglia allargata, come succede altre volte nei suoi libri, figli, nipoti, parenti: qui sono due coppie sposate a occupare la scena.
Due coppie sposate, una americana, l’altra figlia di emigrati dall’Iran, arrivati in US da piccoli: che si incontrano per la prima volta in un aeroporto, ovviamente quello di Baltimora (Tyler sceglie sempre la sua città per ambientare le sue storie).
Entrambe stanno aspettando un arrivo speciale proveniente dalla Corea: per entrambe le coppie è in arrivo una bambina coreana adottata (la copertina ha al centro proprio le due bambine, ciascuna tenuta per mano da un’adulta).

È il 15 agosto 1997.
Da lì in avanti, ogni 15 agosto, le due famiglie si incontrano per festeggiare quella ricorrenza, che battezzano la Festa dell’Arrivo. È la famiglia americana che promuove l’iniziativa di festeggiamenti congiunti, con tanto di torta rossa e blu a stelle e strisce.
I due nuclei si tengono comunque in contatto, non solo quel giorno, ma tutto l’anno, si frequentano e telefonano: condividono un momento clou, si sentono vicine, legate.



In privato, però, una famiglia scherza sull’altra, su usi e costumi, una bonaria presa in giro. Chiaro, ci sono notevoli differenze sui metodi educativi, i valori, gli obiettivi: tutto materiale che arricchisce il racconto.
Per esempio, il padre di origine iraniana, ormai perfettamente integrato in US al punto di parlare inglese senza accento, dice:
A proposito di feste – proseguì Sami – non sembra anche a voi così tipicamente americano il fatto che per i Donaldson il giorno in cui la loro figlia è arrivata in questo paese, sia più importante del giorno in cui è nata? Per il suo compleanno le fanno qualche regalino, mentre per il giorno in cui è arrivata in America c’è la Festa dell’Arrivo, una cosa in grande stile con tanto di famiglie allargate, canzoni e presentazioni cinematografiche. Attenzione! Sei arrivata nella Terra Promessa! L’apice di ogni gloria!



Poi, il nonno della famiglia americana e la nonna di quella iraniana, capiscono di condividere più che le nipotine, tra loro si accende una scintilla.
Ma non tutto scivola così rose e fiori come potrebbe apparire.

La scrittura della Tyler invece scivola senza incepparsi, senza costruire momenti ostici o impegnativi: con la consueta ironia e delicatezza, con pacatezza e garbo, crea personaggi e psicologie che catturano, racconta emozioni e sentimenti, gioie e dolori. Scava, come indica il titolo originale (Digging to America), affronta temi importanti, come l’adozione e l’integrazione, che non riguarda solo le due bimbe accolte in una nuova famiglia, ma anche la coppia straniera e quella indigena, gli iraniani da una parte, gli americani dall’altra.

Did not expect to be as captivated by this story as I was, but then, this is my third Tyler title in a row, and you would think by this point I would know better. What can I say? She makes every character believable. You get inside their perspectives, thoughts, motivations, preferences, and you imagine what it's like to be them -- and you realize you are them, we are all them, look at how we all do these same things!

The basic plot setup is two Korean babies arriving on an airplane to be adopted by two different families who then become friends: OK. But Tyler's genius is exploring all the inner workings of the various members of the families. It's just so good. If you enjoy studying interpersonal dynamics, if you've ever felt like an outsider, if you've ever wanted to belong while also wanting to escape, you'll love this.

Thank you, Kelley, for recommending it and single-handedly launching my current Tyler binge!

Totally enjoyed this book. It started out with two families awaiting adopted babies at the airport. The babies are two girls from Korea that bring these two families together because of the shared experience. One of the families is Iranian and the other American. The way their lives become entwined is the magic of Ann Tyler.

Another beautifully rendered book by Anne Tyler. Tyler shifts in and out of different times for the suite of characters' lives effortlessly - particularly noticeable as this is something that Lionel Shriver, in a book I recent read, fails at.

مریم یه زن ایرانی‌ست که همراه با شوهرش در سال‌های پیش از انقلاب به آمریکا مهاجرت می‌کنند. پسرش سام در آمریکا متولد می‌شه. سام با یه دختر ایرانی به نام زیبا ازدواج می‌کنه. سام و زیبا نمی‌تونن بچه‌دار بشن و یه نوزاد کره‌ای ُ به فرزندی قبول می‌کنند و اسم‌ش ُ می‌ذارن «سوزان». زمانی که تو فرودگاه بچه رو به اون‌ها تحویل می‌دن، یه نوزاد کره‌ای دیگه هم تحویل یه خانواده‌ی آمریکایی به نام دونالدسون‌ می‌دن و همین موضوع بهانه‌ای می‌شه برای معاشرت و دوستی این دو خانواده که برای سالیان طولانی ادامه پیدا می‌کنه. دو خانواده‌ی متضاد و کاملاً متفاوت.

کم‌تر کتابی دیدم مثل «نقب‌زدن به آمریکا» که اسم‌ش این‌قدر به‌ش بیاد.
نَقب زدن یعنی: راهی در زیرزمین تعبیه کردن و از آن راه مخفیانه به خزینه یا خانه یا حصار داخل شدن . مخفیانه و از زیرزمین به جائی رخنه کردن و بدانجا راه یافتن.
و این کتاب داستان کسانی‌ست که به آمریکا مهاجرت کرده یا می‌کنند. داستان کنار نیامدن‌ها و حل‌نشدن‌ها و خارجی بودن و ماندن‌ها. مثل کسانی که از راه مخفی زیرزمینی خارج می‌شن و متوجه می‌شن که تو یه دنیای بی‌گانه‌اند.
مریم به عنوان کسی که نزدیک چهل سال در آمریکا زندگی کرده و سوزان که کودکی‌ش داره در آمریکا می‌گذره، هر دو نسبت به بیگانه‌بودن حس مشابهی دارن. و این کتاب بیان‌گر احساسات و تغییرات اون‌هاست.

شوهر خانم نویسنده یک روان‌پزشک و نویسنده‌ی ایرانی بوده که البته مرحوم شدن. زندگی با یه ایرانی و معاشرت با خانواده‌ی همسرش، باعث شده نویسنده شناخت خوبی از ایرانی‌ها و فرهنگ ایرانی داشته‌باشه و محوریت قرار دادن یه خانواده‌ی ایرانی توی این کتاب، برای من خیلی جذابیت داشت.

کتاب ُ خیلی دوست دارم و یکی از بهترین داستان‌هایی‌ست که خوندم.

× یکی‌دوتا کتاب دیگه از نویسنده بخونم، تصمیم می‌گیرم اسم‌ش ُ به لیست نویسنده‌های مورد علاقه‌م اضافه‌کنم یا نه.