Unrooted Childhoods: Memoirs of Growing up Global
Encyclopedia
Unrooted Childhoods: Memoirs of Growing up Global is a book of memoirs of people who grew up in multiple countries, or moving frequently between distant regions within the same country, also known as third culture kid
s, and is edited by Faith Eidse and Nina Sichel. It documents the life (including the unique challenges, feelings of difference/outsiderism, and gifts) of growing up in multiple nations, cultures, and language-regions by weaving the individual memoirs of notable and also unknown writers, notables include Eidse, Sichel, Isabel Allende
, Marie Arana, Pat Conroy
, Pico Iyer, and many others into one book. It was published in 2003.
, she grew up in Congo
/Zaire
, Canada
, and the United States. Nina Sichel, born in the U.S. and raised in Venezuela
, is a writer, former editor and ESL teacher.
, Ariel Dorfman
, and Tara Bahrampour, and military brat Pat Conroy
speak eloquently about the pain and also the riches of the search for home". The same review was also somewhat critical of the wistful tone of some of the other writers.
Third culture kid
Third culture kid is a term coined in the early 1950s by American sociologist and anthropologist Ruth Hill Useem "to refer to the children who accompany their parents into another society". Other terms, such as trans-culture kid, are also used by some. More recently, American sociologist David C...
s, and is edited by Faith Eidse and Nina Sichel. It documents the life (including the unique challenges, feelings of difference/outsiderism, and gifts) of growing up in multiple nations, cultures, and language-regions by weaving the individual memoirs of notable and also unknown writers, notables include Eidse, Sichel, Isabel Allende
Isabel Allende
Isabel Allende Llona is a Chilean writer with American citizenship. Allende, whose works sometimes contain aspects of the "magic realist" tradition, is famous for novels such as The House of the Spirits and City of the Beasts , which have been commercially successful...
, Marie Arana, Pat Conroy
Pat Conroy
Pat Conroy , is a New York Times bestselling author who has written several acclaimed novels and memoirs. Two of his novels, The Prince of Tides and The Great Santini, were made into Oscar-nominated films.-Early life:...
, Pico Iyer, and many others into one book. It was published in 2003.
Primary authors
Faith Eidse is an award-winning writer and author. The recipient of the Kingsbury Award and nominated for the Bellwether PrizeBellwether Prize
The Bellwether Prize for Fiction is a biennial award given to a U.S. citizen for a previously unpublished work of fiction that address issues of social justice. The prize was established by noted author Barbara Kingsolver, and is funded by her. Winning authors receive a $25,000 award and a...
, she grew up in Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
/Zaire
Zaire
The Republic of Zaire was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between 27 October 1971 and 17 May 1997. The name of Zaire derives from the , itself an adaptation of the Kongo word nzere or nzadi, or "the river that swallows all rivers".-Self-proclaimed Father of the Nation:In...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and the United States. Nina Sichel, born in the U.S. and raised in Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, is a writer, former editor and ESL teacher.
Notable contributors
- Pat ConroyPat ConroyPat Conroy , is a New York Times bestselling author who has written several acclaimed novels and memoirs. Two of his novels, The Prince of Tides and The Great Santini, were made into Oscar-nominated films.-Early life:...
is a military bratMilitary bratA military brat describes people who spend their childhood or adolescence while a parent serve full-time in the armed forces, and can also refer to the unique subculture and lifestyle of American military brats, the term refers to both current and former children of such families.Lifestyle: The...
and award-winning, best-selling author. His works include The Great SantiniThe Great SantiniThe Great Santini is a 1979 film which tells the story of a Marine officer whose success as a military aviator contrasts with his shortcomings as a husband and father. The film explores the high price of heroism and self-sacrifice...
. - Ruth Unselm is a writer and researcher and is credited with coining the term "third culture kidThird culture kidThird culture kid is a term coined in the early 1950s by American sociologist and anthropologist Ruth Hill Useem "to refer to the children who accompany their parents into another society". Other terms, such as trans-culture kid, are also used by some. More recently, American sociologist David C...
". - Isabel AllendeIsabel AllendeIsabel Allende Llona is a Chilean writer with American citizenship. Allende, whose works sometimes contain aspects of the "magic realist" tradition, is famous for novels such as The House of the Spirits and City of the Beasts , which have been commercially successful...
Chilean writer who grew up as a Chilean Foreign Service bratForeign Service BratIn the United States a Foreign Service brat is a person whose parent served full-time in with the forces in a posting abroad during that person's childhood. The term brat is often thought of as derogatory; however, for some who have experienced this background, the term has a neutral feel and is...
. - Ariel DorfmanAriel DorfmanVladimiro Ariel Dorfman is an Argentine-Chilean novelist, playwright, essayist, academic, and human rights activist. A citizen of the United States since 2004, he has been a professor of literature and Latin American Studies at Duke University, in Durham, North Carolina since 1985.-Personal...
Reception
The literary review "Booklist" said that writings in the book "including that by Isabel AllendeIsabel Allende
Isabel Allende Llona is a Chilean writer with American citizenship. Allende, whose works sometimes contain aspects of the "magic realist" tradition, is famous for novels such as The House of the Spirits and City of the Beasts , which have been commercially successful...
, Ariel Dorfman
Ariel Dorfman
Vladimiro Ariel Dorfman is an Argentine-Chilean novelist, playwright, essayist, academic, and human rights activist. A citizen of the United States since 2004, he has been a professor of literature and Latin American Studies at Duke University, in Durham, North Carolina since 1985.-Personal...
, and Tara Bahrampour, and military brat Pat Conroy
Pat Conroy
Pat Conroy , is a New York Times bestselling author who has written several acclaimed novels and memoirs. Two of his novels, The Prince of Tides and The Great Santini, were made into Oscar-nominated films.-Early life:...
speak eloquently about the pain and also the riches of the search for home". The same review was also somewhat critical of the wistful tone of some of the other writers.
See also
- Global nomadGlobal nomadThe term Global Nomad can mean:*People with an international lifestyle, of multi-national background or living/working in more than one country:*People who grew up in a country other than their own *Existential migration...
- Itinerants
- Military brat (U.S. subculture)
- Nomads
- Social psychologySocial psychologySocial psychology is the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. By this definition, scientific refers to the empirical method of investigation. The terms thoughts, feelings, and behaviors include all...
- SubcultureSubcultureIn sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a group of people with a culture which differentiates them from the larger culture to which they belong.- Definition :...
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