Library Loot ~ August 10-16

Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America ~ by Firoozeh Dumas, 2003, memoir (California), 9/10

In 1972, when she was seven, Firoozeh Dumas and her family moved from Iran to Southern California, arriving with no firsthand knowledge of this country beyond her father’s glowing memories of his graduate school years here. More family soon followed, and the clan has been here ever since.

Funny in Farsi chronicles the American journey of Dumas’s wonderfully engaging family: her engineer father, a sweetly quixotic dreamer who first sought riches on Bowling for Dollars and in Las Vegas, and later lost his job during the Iranian revolution; her elegant mother, who never fully mastered English (nor cared to); her uncle, who combated the effects of American fast food with an army of miraculous American weight-loss gadgets; and Firoozeh herself, who as a girl changed her name to Julie, and who encountered a second wave of culture shock when she met and married a Frenchman, becoming part of a one-couple melting pot.

In a series of deftly drawn scenes, we watch the family grapple with American English (hot dogs and hush puppies? — a complete mystery), American traditions (Thanksgiving turkey? — an even greater mystery, since it tastes like nothing), and American culture (Firoozeh’s parents laugh uproariously at Bob Hope on television, although they don’t get the jokes even when she translates them into Farsi).

Above all, this is an unforgettable story of identity, discovery, and the power of family love. It is a book that will leave us all laughing — without an accent.

I finished reading this memoir the day I picked it up.  It's fun and reads quickly.  I rate it 9 of 10, an excellent book that frequently made me smile.

Before I Fall ~ by Lauran Oliver, 2010, YA fiction, 8/10

What if you had only one day to live?  What would you do?  Who would you kiss?  And how far would you go to save your own life?  Samantha Kingston has it all:  the world's most crush-worthy boyfriend, three amazing best friends, and first pick of everything at Thomas Jefferson High — from the best table in the cafeteria to the choicest parking spot.  Friday, February 12, should be just another day in her charmed life.  Instead, it turns out to be her last.  Then she gets a second chance. Seven chances, in fact. Reliving her last day during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death — and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing.

I got this one from the library last week, but I didn't post a thing all week, including Library Loot.  I've finished it already and rate it 8 of 10, a very good book.

Library Loot is a weekly meme co-hosted by Claire from The Captive Reader and Marg from The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library.  Marg has the Mister Linky this week, if you'd like to share a list of the loot you brought home.