Real Americans by Rachel Khong

Real Americans is an Asian American story told in three parts, each narrated by a different generation of the Chen family— a daughter, her son, and lastly her mother. The story traces their lives across China and the United States.

Real Americans opens with Lily, an art major student who works as an upaid intern for an online magazine. She struggles to be comfortable with herself both economically and culturally. At the magazine's Christmas party, she meets Matthew, the nephew of the magazine owner. Despite Matthew initially not being completely open about who he really is, they quickly fall in love. As their relationship ebbs and flows, Lily constantly wrestles with her insecurity of herself and belonging in Matthew's world.

The middle of the story is told by Nick, Lily's and Matthew's son. He and Lily live on an island of the coast of Washington state. Nick has no idea who his father is as his mother won't discuss the topic. Nick's best friend encourages him to take a swab-and-mail in DNA test. When the results come back, Nick begins to piece together who is his father, and what he thinks he wants for a life.

The novel closes with May's story. May is Lily's mom and Nick's grandmother. The reader is introduced to her in Lily's section where the disconnect between mother and daughter is evident. In this last part of the novel, May describes her childhood in China which includes living through and escaping China’s Cultural Revolution. When she leaves China, she makes a difficult choice. Once in America, she builds a life as a geneticist but her past experiments and choices have long-reaching effects on the subsequent generations.

Themes found in this novel revolve around immigration and what it means to belong/be American, how financial privilage influences lives, and the reprecussion of secrets.

Real Americans is an engaging read. However, there are holes in the story and pieces of the plot that are confusing. For example, at the end of Nick's narrative he is sitting with his father and grandfather at their family home. In May's story it is quickly apparent that Nick no longer speaks with them. Why? Another example is the ability of Lily and Matthew to pause time - it is unclear how this relates to the overall plot.

May is the most interesting character as she is the most fully developed one. Eventually you understand why she is the way she is and empathize with her when she tries to make amends. Lily and Nick are hard to connect with. Both characters spend a good amount of time wallowing and suffer a bit from martyrdom.

Companion Song: Bruce Springsteen "American Land"

Author Authentic: It took Rachel Khong seven years to write Real Americans and she writes using a 'wedge system' using a silent timer to track her work time.