Difference between revisions of "Islandborn"
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Released in March 2018, Islandborn is the first children's book by Dominican-American author and Pulitzer Prize-winner Junot Díaz. With illustrations by Leo Espinosa, who was born in Colombia, the picture-book features Dominican girls living in the Bronx, much like Díaz's goddaughters to whom he had long promised a children's book. The protagonist Lola, who immigrated when she was six years old, does not remember the Dominican Republic, and sets out to fill in her missing memories.<ref>[[wikipedia:Islandborn|Islandborn]]. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.</ref> | Released in March 2018, Islandborn is the first children's book by Dominican-American author and Pulitzer Prize-winner Junot Díaz. With illustrations by Leo Espinosa, who was born in Colombia, the picture-book features Dominican girls living in the Bronx, much like Díaz's goddaughters to whom he had long promised a children's book. The protagonist Lola, who immigrated when she was six years old, does not remember the Dominican Republic, and sets out to fill in her missing memories.<ref>[[wikipedia:Islandborn|Islandborn]]. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.</ref> | ||
| − | == Plot == | + | ==Plot== |
Islandborn follows a young girl named Lola as she tries to remember the Island, the country she left as a baby. She tracks details through memories from family and friends, all of which are vividly illustrated by Leo Espinosa in brightly colored pages—that is, until a dark, shadowy “Monster” interrupts Lola’s cheerful narrative. | Islandborn follows a young girl named Lola as she tries to remember the Island, the country she left as a baby. She tracks details through memories from family and friends, all of which are vividly illustrated by Leo Espinosa in brightly colored pages—that is, until a dark, shadowy “Monster” interrupts Lola’s cheerful narrative. | ||
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Some of the memories depicted in Lola’s book are jubilant, as her neighbors, family and friends recall the sound of music and the brilliant colors of their island homeland. Other memories are much darker, however, because of the “Monster” who invaded the Island and ruled it for 30 years before “heroes rose up” and banished it forever. Though unnamed, it’s clearly a reference to dictator Rafael Trujillo, whose reign of terror traumatized generations of Dominicans.<ref>MacPherson, Karen (2018). [https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/junot-diaz-says-childrens-books-lack-cultural-diversity-so-he-wrote-one-of-his-own/2018/03/08/a92467a8-208b-11e8-badd-7c9f29a55815_story.html Junot Diaz says children’s books lack diversity. He hopes his will help change that.]. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.</ref> | Some of the memories depicted in Lola’s book are jubilant, as her neighbors, family and friends recall the sound of music and the brilliant colors of their island homeland. Other memories are much darker, however, because of the “Monster” who invaded the Island and ruled it for 30 years before “heroes rose up” and banished it forever. Though unnamed, it’s clearly a reference to dictator Rafael Trujillo, whose reign of terror traumatized generations of Dominicans.<ref>MacPherson, Karen (2018). [https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/junot-diaz-says-childrens-books-lack-cultural-diversity-so-he-wrote-one-of-his-own/2018/03/08/a92467a8-208b-11e8-badd-7c9f29a55815_story.html Junot Diaz says children’s books lack diversity. He hopes his will help change that.]. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.</ref> | ||
| − | == Inspiration == | + | ==Inspiration== |
[[File:Islandborn monster.jpg|thumb|315x315px|Islandborn monster]] | [[File:Islandborn monster.jpg|thumb|315x315px|Islandborn monster]] | ||
Diaz mentioned that he was hoping this book wouldn’t just be a comment on little Lola and her lovely family and this larger island community from which she comes, but hoping it would also be something of a dialogue about what children’s literature is capable of. Children’s books are no strangers to monsters or antagonists, the building blocks to many self-sustaining plots. But in this book, the Monster of Islandborn comes to represent larger political implications. | Diaz mentioned that he was hoping this book wouldn’t just be a comment on little Lola and her lovely family and this larger island community from which she comes, but hoping it would also be something of a dialogue about what children’s literature is capable of. Children’s books are no strangers to monsters or antagonists, the building blocks to many self-sustaining plots. But in this book, the Monster of Islandborn comes to represent larger political implications. | ||
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The Monster of “Islandborn” is a large, bat-like creature. In its first appearance, it flies above a wave that threatens to encapsulate the Island. For those familiar with Díaz’s work, the parallels between the Island and the Dominican Republic are overt: between the Monster’s 30 years of havoc and Rafael Trujillo’s 31 years of dictatorship, and between the wave and Hurricane San Zenon, the natural disaster that prompted Trujillo to place the nation under martial law and rebuild Santo Domingo under a new name—Ciudad Trujillo (Trujillo City). But Díaz makes no explicit references to what the Monster could represent: The monster is simply called “the Monster,” just as the island is called “the Island.”<ref>Z. Li, Grace (2018). [https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2018/3/6/junot-diaz-interview-islandborn/ Junot Díaz on the Monster of 'Islandborn']. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.</ref> | The Monster of “Islandborn” is a large, bat-like creature. In its first appearance, it flies above a wave that threatens to encapsulate the Island. For those familiar with Díaz’s work, the parallels between the Island and the Dominican Republic are overt: between the Monster’s 30 years of havoc and Rafael Trujillo’s 31 years of dictatorship, and between the wave and Hurricane San Zenon, the natural disaster that prompted Trujillo to place the nation under martial law and rebuild Santo Domingo under a new name—Ciudad Trujillo (Trujillo City). But Díaz makes no explicit references to what the Monster could represent: The monster is simply called “the Monster,” just as the island is called “the Island.”<ref>Z. Li, Grace (2018). [https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2018/3/6/junot-diaz-interview-islandborn/ Junot Díaz on the Monster of 'Islandborn']. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.</ref> | ||
| − | == Impact == | + | ==Impact== |
Here are a review from The Washington Post: | Here are a review from The Washington Post: | ||
| − | * ''Diaz validates/affirms the experiences of ALL immigrant children, in particular Afro-Latinx immigrant children, whose cultures/identities are often overlooked in discussions of race & identity in America'' | + | *''Diaz validates/affirms the experiences of ALL immigrant children, in particular Afro-Latinx immigrant children, whose cultures/identities are often overlooked in discussions of race & identity in America'' |
| − | * ''Builds/bridges the authentic lives and experiences of Afro-Latinx in a way that helps to challenge misinformation, misrepresentations and stereotypes of Afro-Latinx people'' | + | *''Builds/bridges the authentic lives and experiences of Afro-Latinx in a way that helps to challenge misinformation, misrepresentations and stereotypes of Afro-Latinx people'' |
| − | * ''Illustrations validate/affirm the vibrant culture, skin color, hair texture, rich history and community of island born Afro-Latinx people in America.''<ref>[https://www.responsivereads.com/responsive-reads-blog-posts/islandborn-by-junot-diaz Islandborn by Junot Diaz]. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.</ref | + | *''Illustrations validate/affirm the vibrant culture, skin color, hair texture, rich history and community of island born Afro-Latinx people in America.''<ref>[https://www.responsivereads.com/responsive-reads-blog-posts/islandborn-by-junot-diaz Islandborn by Junot Diaz]. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.</ref> |
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| + | ==Reference== | ||
[[Category: Anti-Black Racism in Children's Story Book]] | [[Category: Anti-Black Racism in Children's Story Book]] | ||
| + | <references /> | ||
Revision as of 15:52, 27 December 2020
Released in March 2018, Islandborn is the first children's book by Dominican-American author and Pulitzer Prize-winner Junot Díaz. With illustrations by Leo Espinosa, who was born in Colombia, the picture-book features Dominican girls living in the Bronx, much like Díaz's goddaughters to whom he had long promised a children's book. The protagonist Lola, who immigrated when she was six years old, does not remember the Dominican Republic, and sets out to fill in her missing memories.[1]
Contents
Plot
Islandborn follows a young girl named Lola as she tries to remember the Island, the country she left as a baby. She tracks details through memories from family and friends, all of which are vividly illustrated by Leo Espinosa in brightly colored pages—that is, until a dark, shadowy “Monster” interrupts Lola’s cheerful narrative.
“Every kid in Lola’s school was from somewhere else,” the book begins. The children’s teacher asks each of her students to draw a picture of their “first country.” Lola is at first panicked because she remembers nothing of her birthplace. But she eventually realizes that she can — literally and figuratively — draw on the many memories of the family and friends who come from her birth country, and she ends up with so much material that she creates an entire book of pictures.
Some of the memories depicted in Lola’s book are jubilant, as her neighbors, family and friends recall the sound of music and the brilliant colors of their island homeland. Other memories are much darker, however, because of the “Monster” who invaded the Island and ruled it for 30 years before “heroes rose up” and banished it forever. Though unnamed, it’s clearly a reference to dictator Rafael Trujillo, whose reign of terror traumatized generations of Dominicans.[2]
Inspiration
Diaz mentioned that he was hoping this book wouldn’t just be a comment on little Lola and her lovely family and this larger island community from which she comes, but hoping it would also be something of a dialogue about what children’s literature is capable of. Children’s books are no strangers to monsters or antagonists, the building blocks to many self-sustaining plots. But in this book, the Monster of Islandborn comes to represent larger political implications.
“For me, the Monster represents the savage, traumatic histories from which many of us immigrants emerge—a history that is often erased or silenced within our communities and inside of the community in which we find ourselves,” Díaz says. “It’s a common injury that many immigrant communities wrestle with.”
The Monster of “Islandborn” is a large, bat-like creature. In its first appearance, it flies above a wave that threatens to encapsulate the Island. For those familiar with Díaz’s work, the parallels between the Island and the Dominican Republic are overt: between the Monster’s 30 years of havoc and Rafael Trujillo’s 31 years of dictatorship, and between the wave and Hurricane San Zenon, the natural disaster that prompted Trujillo to place the nation under martial law and rebuild Santo Domingo under a new name—Ciudad Trujillo (Trujillo City). But Díaz makes no explicit references to what the Monster could represent: The monster is simply called “the Monster,” just as the island is called “the Island.”[3]
Impact
Here are a review from The Washington Post:
- Diaz validates/affirms the experiences of ALL immigrant children, in particular Afro-Latinx immigrant children, whose cultures/identities are often overlooked in discussions of race & identity in America
- Builds/bridges the authentic lives and experiences of Afro-Latinx in a way that helps to challenge misinformation, misrepresentations and stereotypes of Afro-Latinx people
- Illustrations validate/affirm the vibrant culture, skin color, hair texture, rich history and community of island born Afro-Latinx people in America.[4]
Reference
- ↑ Islandborn. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.
- ↑ MacPherson, Karen (2018). Junot Diaz says children’s books lack diversity. He hopes his will help change that.. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.
- ↑ Z. Li, Grace (2018). Junot Díaz on the Monster of 'Islandborn'. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.
- ↑ Islandborn by Junot Diaz. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.

