I feel like I predicted the general gist and maybe even a few details of this book just by the title (not a bad thing, by the way). The author - Pedro Martin - tells the story of growing up a first-generation American born to Mexican parents in a graphic novel format. But instead of giving a broad overview of his childhood, the entire book is literally just one event: his family's road trip from California to Mexico in their Winnebago to pick up Pedro's grandpa and bring him back to the U.S. to live with them. With all 8 of his siblings and his parents.
I think my favorite thing about this memoir (other than the laugh-out-loud funny parts) was that there were so many small details that were so random and genuine that they just felt true and were, consequently, funnier. Like that his mom always snapped bananas in half for a snack in the car or that his brother guzzled a milkshake when they first got to Mexico and the unpasteurized milk in it gave him the runs or that Pedro's only recorded cassette that survived the Mexican border guards' confiscation is one with the song "Shipoopi" from The Music Man. It made me feel like IF I could remember specific details about my own childhood and my family's quirks, I, too, could write a funny memoir.
No comments:
Post a Comment