Simone’s Comments (group member since Jan 09, 2018)

Simone’s comments from the Words Between Worlds group.

Hey everyone! How did you all enjoy our March book WHY I’M NO LONGER TALKING TO WHITE PEOPLE ABOUT RACE. I feel like it really incited some deep thoughts for me especially around my personal experiences.

We’ve been trying to figure out the best way to talk about race in a safe and honest way. Instead of going deeper into what Reni Eddo-Lodge spoke of in her book, we thought it might be best to just talk. Let’s talk about race and what this book taught you. Or talk about a story you are willing to share.

We want to make sure that this is a safe place, so if you do share here, please keep in mind the other folks who will be reading and sharing as well. We don’t want to make people feel uncomfortable, so let’s make sure to respect one another.

Here you can add your overall thoughts of the book after you've finished (no spoilers!). Also, if you have a blog post on your thoughts, you can share a link here!

I love this article! Thanks for adding it!

Miriam wrote: "I really liked Casey and Unu together. I thought they were good for one another, but I don't like how they didn't challenge each other to be better. I always thought it was odd how Casey seemed so ..."

Thanks so much for commenting, Miriam!

I wasn't the biggest fan of Casey and Unu's relationship because of their inability to challenge each other. I was so surprised to see Casey be nonchalant about Unu's gambling especially since she doesn't have any money. I would think she'd be upset to see good money go to waste on him. However, I didn't agree with her sleeping with Hugh.

I totally agree with you about Ted and Ella. Ella was obviously in love with her coworker at the school and Ted is an idiot. I would have dumped his ass after finding out that he gave me herpes. Even if it came from someone else or from sitting on the bus, I don't care. He put the life of his unborn kid in jeopardy and Ella has to live with herpes for the rest of her life.

But then the whole battle to get the kid. OMG. Every single person in Ted's life was like "don't take the kid," and he goes after her anyway! I don't get it. He's already done enough damage to Ella and her emotions, so I don't get why he's now going after her kid. I don't even think he wants her. He just wants to win, which is a shitty thing to do as a parent.

Part two feels like it's all about the relationships built by the characters we now know and come to like. The particular relationships I'm thinking about are:

Casey and Unu
Ella and Ted
Casey and Sabine
Leah and Charles

What are your thoughts on the pairings described in this part?
What are your thoughts on Sabine and Casey's relationship?

In Part Three, we see the characters kind of live with the choices they've made in Part 2. Here's some scenarios that I'm thinking of (spoiler warning):

Unu's gambling becomes a more serious issue.
Casey has sex with Hugh.
Leah is raped and pregnant with Charles.
Ella struggles to fight Ted for custody of her child while Ted's whole family and love interest tries to dissuade him from taking custody.

What do you think about these decisions and actions of the characters coming to a head?

Also, what would you do if you were to choose between making money for money's sake or creating something you're passionate about like Casey and her hats?

Anyone else thought it was strange that she didn't pursue this as much? What are your thoughts on her decision to go to Business School and not complete her schooling at FIT?

Let's chat!

Miriam wrote: "So my diverse bookish journey started when I was young. I don't even remember the name of the book, just that it was about a Native American women in pioneer times. It was the first time I read som..."

I totally feel you! As I look back at some of the books I read as a kid, I do remember there were some diverse novels in there. I guess for me I wasn't actively seeking them out and either they were assigned in class or someone told me that it was good without thinking about the diversity it presents.

Welcome to the group!

Miriam wrote: "I think there is a lot of pressure being a child from an immigrant family, or even a poor family. You don't have time to mess around and "figure things out" after you graduate. It's time to get ser..."

Thanks so much for your comment, Miriam! I'm going to say one thing and then I think we're going to move this whole convo over to a new thread.

I think you mentioned something important here. You mentioned that while you may not be from an immigrant family, your mom was more focused on you doing well in school and getting a good job after. I feel like this is something that deep down Joseph wants for Casey. At the end of the day, all a parent wants for their child is not to suffer through the same life they had and come out on top in the end.

You can contribute more here!: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Sorry, just trying to organize these convos! :)

Hey everyone!

If you're reading this, then you've gotten through the first part of Free Food for Millionaires. I know you must have a lot of thoughts after only 150 pages, so let's chat about them here.

You're more than welcome to speak to any of these topics or even all of them! You can also add your questions below. Let's just have the convo continue!

Just add them to this thread! I would definitely read through the threads in this discussion and respond to what people say. Also, make sure to stay open-minded and kind to those who share here.

Haley and Diana both asked:

Casey seems to blame her lot in life for everything she's been through (being poor, but having the best education you can afford).

What if the tables were turned? What if Casey grew up with the money she seems to envy from Ella and Virginia? What if she went to those schools and didn't have to worry about tuition or loans?

Do you think that Casey would be a different person from today? If so, what kind of person do you imagine her being?

My question is from a thread I posed a couple of days ago:

I think that a lot of us can relate to Casey's feelings of being "inadequate" for her parents. She has a lot of indecision throughout the entire novel, but right in the beginning her father tells her that there's only one choice you can make. You can either be a doctor or lawyer. I know many Asian Americans have dealt with this question in life, but I do feel that anyone who is loyal and dutiful to their parents felt the same way.

Have you ever experienced something like this? How did you over come it?

You can read my response to this question and a few others on this thread: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Happy reading!

Desiree wrote: "Hi everyone! I'm so excited to be joining you all. I grew up in a very small town in Atlantic Canada, with zero diversity whatsoever. Reading was one way for me to learn about other cultures and gr..."

The Kite Runner is a solid choice! I absolutely loved that novel (and wow, I guess my diverse reading journey began much earlier).

Thanks so much for sharing, Desiree! Welcome to the group!

Mat C wrote: "Simone wrote: "Mat C wrote: "Hi everyone! My name is Matoula and i am from Athens, Greece. I found out about this group from Instagram, because i follow owlslibrary (Diana, i think?)
I decided to f..."

How did I totally space and forget that I did read Middlesex and I loved that book! Also, I would love that book you suggested! I can't wait to see what it's about when it's translated to English!

Ashley wrote: "Simone wrote: "Ashley wrote: "When I initially started reading 24/7, I was in middle school. I read whatever I could get my hands on. But at the time 99% of my reading was Paranormal/Romance YA boo..."

OMG YES! I loved Celeste Ng's book! I actually didn't read Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, but I did watch the movie. The feet binding will forever haunt me.

Here you can add your overall thoughts of the book after you've finished (no spoilers!). Also, if you have a blog post on your thoughts, you can share a link here!

Mat C wrote: "Hi everyone! My name is Matoula and i am from Athens, Greece. I found out about this group from Instagram, because i follow owlslibrary (Diana, i think?)
I decided to follow this group despite the ..."

Thanks so much for sharing! I think a lot of countries outside of the US understands the lack of diversity in their own world. I know that in Korea, while there are many ex-patriots living there, it's still very nationalist. Koreans stick with Koreans, if that makes sense. While you may think that Greece is just a white country, it does have a deep set of roots that brought so many innovative ideas that are still practiced today. Even though Greece is predominantly white, I feel that the culture is deep and rich enough to be deserving of a diverse read! Also, I don't think I've read a lot of stories about Greek people and the most that I know is what I've seen in films. I'd love to hear any recommendations (even if they are in Greek)!

Ashley wrote: "When I initially started reading 24/7, I was in middle school. I read whatever I could get my hands on. But at the time 99% of my reading was Paranormal/Romance YA book. For many years, that was th..."

What are some of your favorite books? Who are some of your favorite authors so far?

Diana wrote: "I grew up in a really small white town. Though I have great memories, I always felt a bit out of place. Having a heart-condition didn't help. Therefore, I became an avid reader, always curled up in..."

Love it! Thank you so much for sharing. I know exactly how that feels and it's tough. Growing up on Long Island amongst a very prominent Jewish community, I was very out of place in many different ways. I totally feel you!

Bringing up this new topic since the first 20 pages deals a lot with the choice Casey made with her life. Her parents don't want her to waste the expensive college education to become a hatmaker or anything outside of being a lawyer or a doctor. Did you have to worry about the expectations your parents had for you when you were young?

I feel like a lot of people feel this when they're younger. I always think about James Van Der Beek in Varsity Blues when he says to his dad "I don't want your life"



Growing up, there were only really two choices: doctor or lawyer. My parents initially put me on the lawyer route because I was reading so much, but then they thought I'd be a good MD. The sad part is that they never explained that there are different types of lawyers and different types of doctors. If I went the doctor route, I think I would have been a food scientist.

But I felt a lot like how Casey feels about the next steps for her life. She doesn't want to be a doctor or a lawyer or learn business. She wants to do what she wants to do, but somehow feels this deep obligation to do what her parents ask of her. She's not sure what that is, but there's this huge push the moment you graduate to have that job lined up and ready to move out.

It was tough for me to tell my mom I wanted to be a writer. There were a ton of tears, but my mom was so understanding and I think she was also a little sad. I think what any immigrant parents ever want for their American kids is the dream to make a ton of money and be well off and eventually take care of them when they're too old. I think deep down this is what Casey's father wants for her too, but stubbornness and nearsightedness just gets in the way.

What are your thoughts on Casey's parents and aftermath of that conversation with her father?

I've always read diverse books. From Toni Morrison and Amy Tan, I got a taste of it, but it wasn't until I read Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi that I started to fall deeply in love with diverse reads.

The book showed me a world where Africans and African Americans suffered from the slave trades. Not only did they lose part of their culture, but they also lost their families, their people, their sense of heritage and ethnicity. Being Korean American, I don't think I would be able to survive with my deep culture of traditions and my background's history. I couldn't imagine how people could strip that away from a person and cause them to start over with nothing but what they know as a slave.

It opened my eyes to the African Americans who talk about how cultural appropriation is not okay. When you lose everything and you had to build it back from the beginning, of course you're going to be fiercely protective of that culture. Of course you will want to share it with people, but you also want them to learn why this is important to that marginalized group. It made me see how a huge point in history is still rippling through time and still affecting people daily.

After I read this, I couldn't stop. I needed more marginalized voices and hear their stories. I wanted to learn so badly about how other people lived their lives. I always thought of myself as a person who lived in a bubble and sometimes we need to break that bubble to build empathy for our brothers and sisters.

Since the book is based on a blog post written in 2014, I wanted to share that post as well. If you haven't had a chance to read this book or if you don't plan on participating or if you want to get a head start on what this book is about, this article will give you a glimpse into what this book is about: http://renieddolodge.co.uk/why-im-no-...