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Quote by Dinaw Mengestu

“Personally, its a comfort and happiness to know that my work is taken seriously and is not marginalised and put in a box of ethnic immigrant writing in America.”

Quote by Dinaw Mengestu

Author

Dinaw Mengestu is a contemporary Ethiopian-American novelist recognized for his exploration of themes such as immigration, identity, and the African diaspora. Born in 1978, he has gained acclaim for his insightful narratives that frequently reflect on the experiences of African immigrants in the United States. more

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“When I was growing up, Forest Park was full of integrated families. It was amazing. One my best friends was Vietnamese. Another one was half-Mexican, half-black. Another one was from Colombia. Another one was born in the U.S., but his mom was from Germany and spoke with a German accent. So we all had multiple identities.”

Black Born Half Growing Up Growing Identity Mom Forests Germany Parks Spokes Multiple Accents My Best Friend Mexican Integrated Colombia Vietnamese Multiple Identities

Author:Dinaw Mengestu

“The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears is very much about America - it just happens to have African and Ethiopian characters, and in fact, it happens to have more characters who are not Ethiopian than who are.”

Character Facts Happens America Beautiful Heaven Bears Beautiful Things

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“I wanted to write about the Korean War, but I had no entry into it that made the kind of sense it needs to make for a novelist.”

Needs Writing Kind Made War Wanted Novelists Korean Entry Korean War

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“Most people dont think about race as much as I do. They dont have to.”

People Thinking Race

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“Like most people, Im fascinated by characters who are completely flawed personalities, riven by anguish and doubt, and are psychologically suspect.”

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“For each of us has a perch on the tree. After we are gone, that perch is marked by a notch, permanent, yes, but with its edges muting over time, assuming the tree is ever growing. Years from now someone can see that you were here, or there, and although you had little conception or care for the wider branching, in the next life there might be a sigh of wonder at how quietly flourishing it all was, if never majestic.”

Ifs Years Littles Might Care Next Wonder Gone Growing Tree Assuming Edges Permanent Conception Sigh Flourishing Majestic Next Life Notches

Book:On Such a Full Sea: A Novel

Source: On Such a Full Sea: A Novel

“My family immigrated when I was 3, and our predecessors inhabited the Korean Peninsula for as long as can be recalled.”

Long My Family Korean Predecessors Peninsulas

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“What hasty preparations we make for our future. Think of it: it seems almost tragic, the things we're sure we ought to bring along. We pack too heavy with what we hope we'll use, and too light of what we must. We thus go forth misladen, ill equipped for the dawn.”

Thinking Use Light Seems Ought Ill Heavy Preparation Dawn Tragic Our Future Packs Hasty

Book:On Such a Full Sea: A Novel

Source: On Such a Full Sea: A Novel

“To be honest, Im not that much of a reader of Korean fiction, since so little is translated.”

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“For no matter the shadows of an age, the picture of a young couple in love, we are told, speaks most luminously of the future, as the span of that passion makes us believe we can overleap any walls, obliterate whatever obstacles.”

Believe Matter Age Young Passion Speak Wall Couple Shadow Obstacles Couple Love Young Couples

Book:On Such a Full Sea: A Novel

Source: On Such a Full Sea: A Novel