I am delighted I picked up Yo-Yo Boing instead of the other reading. I initially chose this one because a friend had the pdf and not because of the content. I was pleasantly surprised by the content. The first green flag this book gave to me was SPANGLISH!!! I often find myself using a mixed language while talking to my Spanish-speaking friends here because when you have more than one dominant language in your head, they start to overlap and mix. So that was a great way to kickstart the book this week.
From then on, it only improved, from the author’s choice of delivery, a mix of English, Spanish and Spanish, to how it is written. At times it felt like it was written in prose, like a distant cousin of poetry, so even though it was a bit longer than what usually keeps my attention sharp, it was easy to go through.
I adored the themes. The whole dualism of the world and the contracts of Latin American immigrants in the US is fascinating in itself and a basic form of representation. There are millions of people from latin america that fled their homes to find a “better life” or even escape the nightmares that sometimes run through their home countries. I believe many other Latin American people have relatives or know of someone who has done this, and it is such a common practice that many states are known to be predominantly populated by latin american immigrants, such as Texas, Florida and even California.
As someone who left their home of origin and went to an English-speaking country, I often find solace and joy when I hear strangers speaking Spanish in downtown Vancouver and often feel drawn to my fellow Spanish speakers, so I was glad to read something that even in a small way resonated with me and my life.
Overall I enjoyed the portrayal of this bilingualism and often biculturalism from all the different cities: Madrid, Parish, New York and San Juan. But I also appreciated the not-so-light and close-to-home topics, such as racism, discrimination and overall adversities faced in this world by people who are slightly “different” to the ones that usually inhabit it.
My question for you this week might be a bit more personal rather than about the text, but I want to know. Have you ever experienced a situation like the ones portrayed in the book, meaning have you stayed long periods in a country that is not your own and where they do not speak your mother tongue? If yes, do you see your experience reflected in this text?
Jon
March 27, 2023 — 2:08 pm
“The whole dualism of the world and the contracts of Latin American immigrants in the US is fascinating in itself and a basic form of representation.”
Can you say more about this? Do you think that all the characters represented are Latino/a? If they are, then why do they slip into English so often? Why and when do you find yourself slipping into English, even perhaps when talking to someone who’s a native Spanish speaker? And are you still a “Spanish speaker” even when you’re speaking English? It seems to me that many of the characters in Brashi’s book are (as I say in the lecture) between the two languages… neither fully Spanish, nor fully English.
katherine
March 27, 2023 — 3:26 pm
I have had such an experience living in Spain. I am not a native speaker of Spanish, so I had to learn it when I was there. It’s always difficult adjusting to a new place, and it sometimes seems like another language is an additional burden to that adjustment. At first I was really reluctant to actually speak Spanish in case I made embarrassing errors, but over time I accepted that I had to occasionally make a fool of myself in order to make some progress. I related to some aspects of the tension between languages in “Yo-Yo Boing!”, but obviously I couldn’t entirely relate to the Puerto Rican immigrant experience in the United States. I think, like all good literature, you don’t have to exactly resemble the characters to relate to their struggles. The first section in particular may seem familiar to anyone who has done a bit of self-reflection, for example. Thanks for the post!