LITTLE AMERICA

A writing collective gathers as-told-to stories of and from a group of modern American immigrants.

In his preface to the collection, Pakistani American actor and comedian Kumail Nanjiani observes that “at a time when political rhetoric so often demonizes immigrants, [these] stories…have the power to shift that narrative.” The stories that follow come from ordinary people who became the inspiration for the Apple TV+ series Little America. Though highly diverse, the contributors share one commonality: unique, often remarkable life stories that could only have unfolded in America. The book begins with the story of Igwe Udeh, an Igbo man who left Nigeria after the civil war to study economics at the University of Oklahoma. His head filled with the American Westerns he watched growing up, Udeh eventually became a cowboy because he saw the “Igbo spirit in cowboy culture.” Beirut native James King found inspiration in another cultural icon, Elvis. King so admired the singer that he became an Elvis impersonator on the Queen Mary. Yasmin Elhady, who immigrated to Alabama from Egypt, tells how she was ostracized at first by her largely Christian schoolmates for being Muslim. But by the time she reached the end of high school, she used her love of popular culture and especially rap music to win election as class president. Karis Wilde, a transgender performer from Mexico, speaks of how a love of hula-hooping allowed them to transform gender difference that Mexican relatives did not respect into a stage act that caught the eye of superstars like Madonna and Björk. Tokyo native Akisa Fukuzawa writes about how a love of baseball and the study of sports management at Ohio University led her to create a short-lived but well-loved women’s baseball league in Columbus. Illustrated throughout with color photos, this bighearted book celebrates the extraordinary achievements of modern immigrants, clearly demonstrating that what makes—and has always made—America truly great is the diversity of its people.

Uplifting reading.