Journal Entry 1 by indygo88 from Lafayette, Indiana USA on Saturday, March 22, 2008

"As a Vietnamese girl coming of age in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Bich Nguyen is filled with a rapacious hunger for American identity. In the pre-PC era Midwest, where the devoutly Christian blond-haired, blue-eyed Jennifers and Tiffanys reign supreme, Nguyen’s barely conscious desire to belong transmutes into a passion for American food. More exotic seeming than her Buddhist grandmother’s traditional specialties—spring rolls, delicate pancakes stuffed with meats, fried shrimp cakes—the campy, preservative-filled “delicacies” of mainstream America capture her imagination. And in this remarkable book, the glossy branded allure of such American foods as Pringles, Kit Kats, and Toll House cookies become an ingenious metaphor for her struggle to fit in, to become a “real” American."

Nearly new book I found at Goodwill. (hardcover) 

Journal Entry 2 by indygo88 from Lafayette, Indiana USA on Thursday, May 29, 2008

Off it goes to UnwrittenLibra! Happy travels! :') 

Journal Entry 3 by UnwrittenLibra from Houston, Texas USA on Tuesday, June 03, 2008

Received it here today in Baltimore, Maryland - will read and then bring down to Ocean City, Maryland! Thanks, indygo88! 

Journal Entry 4 by UnwrittenLibra from Houston, Texas USA on Thursday, June 12, 2008

Finished it last night/early this morning. The book was certainly well written and made me very hungry, but I just felt that it wasn't anything special. I really hated a lot of the characters, and even the main character a little bit, at times. I felt like the author was a little too obsessed with food. The most enjoyable parts for me were those that were about her grandmother, Noi, and the Buddha statue (the title chapter and situations similar.)

Ah, well...off to Ocean City next week!