Ask Me No Questions

Budhos, Marina Tamar. Ask me no questions. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2006. 9781416949206

Plot Summary: Nadira and her family vacations to America, let their visas expire, and planned to never return to Bangladesh. After September 11^th, the family tries to relocate to Canada, but the father, Abba, is held in jail when the authorities learn about his expired visa. Nadira and her sister are forced to rejoin everyday life and pretend that their lives are completely normal. She learns to trust herself and her instincts and is able to help her father on his way to winning United States residency.

Critical Analysis: Ask Me No Questions by Marina Budhos is a compelling story about a family of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. When the father ends up in jail for holding an expired visa, among other issues, Nadira and her sister must act as if nothing out of the ordinary is happening in their lives. With the danger of being deported at hand, the girls work together to help their father and his case. This story is set in New York City, one of the most multi-cultural parts of the United States. Even then, the family from Bangladesh still stands out immensely, especially following 9/11. This presents an obvious form of good vs. evil: the family vs. the US government. The characters, all non-terrorists, but, never-the-less illegal, are portrayed honestly, and easily become the protagonists in the story. They are not described stereotypically, as the author based the book on true events. Cultural markers in this story include clothing, including saris and shalwar kameezes; language; and cuisine, including luchis and spiced potatoes. Ask Me No Questions is moving, authentic, and full of cultural details. A great read for any young adult.

Reviews:

Booklist: What is it like to be an illegal alien in New York now? In a moving first-person, present-tense narrative, Nadira, 14, relates how her family left Bangladesh, came to the U. S. on a tourist visa, and stayed long after the visa expired ("Everyone does it. You buy a fake social security number for a few hundred dollars and then you can work."). Their illegal status is discovered, however, following 9/11, when immigration regulations are tightened. When the family hurriedly seeks asylum in Canada, they are turned back, and Nadira's father, Abba, is detained because his passport is no longer valid. The secrets are dramatic ("Go to school. Never let anyone know. Never."), and so are the family dynamics, especially Nadira's furious envy of her gifted older sister, Aisha. But Aisha breaks down, and Nadira must take over the struggle to get Abba out of detention and prevent the family's deportation. The teen voice is wonderfully immediate, revealing Nadira's mixed-up feelings as well as the diversity in her family and in the Muslim community. There's also a real drama that builds to a tense climax: Did Abba give funds to a political organization? Where has the money gone? Will Immigration hear his appeal? The answer is a surprise that grows organically from the family's story. Readers will feel the heartbreak, prejudice, kindness, and fear.

Kirkus: Illegal immigrant sisters learn a lot about themselves when their family faces deportation in this compelling contemporary drama. Immigrants from Bangladesh, Nadira, her older sister Aisha and their parents live in New York City with expired visas. Fourteen-year-old Nadira describes herself as "the slow-wit second-born" who follows Aisha, the family star who's on track for class valedictorian and a top-rate college. Everything changes when post-9/11 government crack-downs on Muslim immigrants push the family to seek asylum in Canada where they are turned away at the border and their father is arrested by U.S. immigration. The sisters return to New York living in constant fear of detection and trying to pretend everything is normal. As months pass, Aisha falls apart while Nadira uses her head in "a right way" to save her father and her family. Nadira's need for acceptance by her family neatly parallels the family's desire for acceptance in their adopted country. A perceptive peek into the lives of foreigners on the fringe.

VOYA: Fourteen-year-old Nadira, an illegal immigrant from Bangladesh, sits in the back seat of the car as her father drives her eighteen-year-old sister, Aisha, and her mother to the Canadian border to seek asylum. Having arrived in the United States pre-September 11 on tourist visas, they are now in gross violation of immigration laws and risk deportation. When Nadira's father is detained indefinitely, Nadira and Aisha return alone to New York to stay with relatives and continue with school. This book highlights the plights of illegal immigrants and makes a strong case for their contributions to America, while identifying discrimination in a post-September 11 society. Aisha is valedictorian of her school and has a bright future if her paperwork can be rectified. Nadira is able to bridge the Bangladeshi and American cultures and is the one who sees that her father's name is cleared. Budhos does a good job of writing about South Asian culture and its contrasts with mainstream American culture. A cornucopia of characters represents every stage of immigration and assimilation, from the newly arrived to the first generation. The plot is suspenseful enough to keep the reader interested while maintaining a high level of educational value. Teachers will find this novel very useful in the classroom.

Awards:

Best Children's Books of the Year, 2007 ; Bank Street College of Education; Outstanding Merit; United States

Booklist Book Review Stars , Dec. 15, 2005 ; American Library Association; United States

Booklist Editors' Choice: Books for Youth, 2006 ; Booklist Editor's Choice; United States

Capitol Choices, 2007 ; The Capitol Choices Committee; United States

Kirkus Best Children's Books, 2006 ; Kirkus; United States

Middle and Junior High School Library Catalog, Supplement to Ninth Edition, 2007 ; H.W. Wilson Company; United States

New Beginnings: Life in a New land, 2008 ; Bank Street College of Education; United States

Notable Children's Books, 2007 ; ALSC American Library Association; United States

Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People, 2007 ; National Council for the Social Studies; United States

Senior High Core Collection, Seventeenth Edition, 2007 ; The H. W. Wilson Co.; United States

Senior High School Library Catalog, Sixteenth Edition, 2006 Supplement, 2006 ; H.W. Wilson Company; United States

YALSA Best Books for Young Adults, 2007 ; American Library Association; United States

James Cook Book Award, 2007 Winner United States

Connections: This selection would make a great real aloud in a young adult classroom. Children will be encouraged to forgo passing judgment on their peers based on their ethnicity or race.

Check out the following titles also about cultural conflicts of immigrants…

Cofer, Judith Ortiz. Call me Maria: a novel. New York: Orchard Books, 2004.

Hobbs, Will. Crossing the wire. New York: HarperCollins, 2006.

Park, Linda Sue. A long walk to water: based on a true story : a novel. Boston: Clarion Books, 2010.

Roberto, Nelsa. Illegally blonde: a novel. Winnipeg: Great Plains Teen Fiction, 2010.