Coming of Age Around the World: A Multicultural Anthology Book

Twenty-four stories by renowned international authors chronicle the modern struggle for identity among young people around the globe.

Following in the footsteps of the highly successful Coming of Age in America, this collection of twenty-four stories from around the world is a wonderful introduction to literature rarely available to American readers. Editors Faith Adiele and Mary Frosch magnificently chart the global quest for identity, and make a strong case for the personal and political importance of sharing our stories as they consider whether coming of age is a Western—or universal—concept.

Featuring an array of voices from every continent, this anthology includes luminaries like Ben Okri and Chang-rae Lee, as well as recent bestsellers Marjane Satrapi and Alexandra Fuller, in addition to a variety of authors renowned abroad but less well-known to North American audiences. The diversity extends to form, encompassing fiction and memoir, graphics, lyric prose, and tales in pidgin and patois.

The world presented is complex and current, some inhabitants routinely switching country and language, others trapped by global events that shape us all. Detailed introductions provide historical and cultural context, particularly for Africa and the Muslim world.

Contributors include: Patrick Chamoiseau, Guadalupe Dueñas, Alexandra Fuller, Oonya Kempadoo, Rohinton Mistry, Chang-rae Lee, Colum McCann, Ben Okri, Marjane Satrapi, Hanan al-Shakyh.

KLIATT

The editors have divided 24 stories into six categories: Displaced Childhood, In the Shadow of War, Meeting the Other, School Days, Self-Discovery, and Family. The stories are fairly brief (10 to 20 pages each) and include helpful introductions about the authors and the cultures that influenced them. The first work, Chapter VI from Elisabeth Gille's autobiographical novel Shadows of a Childhood, tells of a young girl who discovers to her horror that her beloved parents will not be returning from a concentration camp. In the Shadow of War begins with a tale by Nigerian Ben Okri about a young village boy who witnesses government atrocities. Meeting the Other includes "Tapka" by David Bezmozgis, a story of Latvian Jewish immigrant children in Toronto. School Days includes "Beets," a short story by Tiffany Midge set in the early 1980s, which deals humorously with the difficulties of growing up in a mixed Sioux and white family. Self-Discovery contains a story by Marjane Satrapi told in b/w graphic novel format about a confused ten-year-old girl in Iran who wants to be a prophet. Editor Faith Adiele's memoir in the Family category is "Black Men," her firsthand account of being the only black member of her Nordic/Nigerian American family. This diverse collection of stories includes fiction and autobiography, dialects and graphics. Every continent is represented. Appropriate for mature high school students interested in a multicultural literary experience. Age Range: Ages 15 to adult. REVIEWER: Janet Julian (Vol. 42, No. 1)