Audiobook Review: Go Back to Where You Came From: And Other Helpful Recommendations on How to Become American

Go Back to Where You Came From: And Other Helpful Recommendations on How to Become American by Wajahat Ali
Publisher: Recorded Books
Release Date: January 25, 2022
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Publisher’s Description:

“Go back to where you came from, you terrorist!” 

This is just one of the many warm, lovely, and helpful tips that Wajahat Ali and other children of immigrants receive on a daily basis. Go back where, exactly? Fremont, California, where he grew up but is now an unaffordable place to live? Or Pakistan, the country his parents left behind a half-century ago? 

Growing up living the suburban American dream, young Wajahat devoured comic books (devoid of Brown superheroes) and fielded well-intentioned advice from uncles and aunties. (“Become a doctor!”) He had turmeric stains under his fingernails, was accident-prone, suffered from OCD, and wore husky pants, but he was as American as his neighbors, with roots all over the world. Then, while Ali was studying at University of California, Berkeley, 9/11 happened. Muslims replaced communists as America’s enemy number one, and he became an accidental spokesman and ambassador of all ordinary, unthreatening things Muslim-y. 

Now a middle-aged dad, Ali has become one of the foremost and funniest public intellectuals in America. In Go Back to Where You Came From, he tackles the dangers of Islamophobia, white supremacy, and chocolate hummus, peppering personal stories with astute insights into national security, immigration, and pop culture. In this refreshingly bold, hopeful, and uproarious memoir, Ali offers indispensable lessons for cultivating a more compassionate, inclusive, and delicious America.

I actually didn’t know who Wajahat Ali was before I read his memoir. I’m not sure where I heard about it or who recommended it to me. Whoever it was, thank you!

Ali is the son of Muslim immigrants from Pakistan. He manages to put a humorous spin on the mircroaggressions he faced as a child and the downright aggression he and other Muslims have had to deal with after 9/11. His book will educate white readers about white privilege and they probably won’t even realize it. Or at least they might not get as defensive.

Then, the middle of the book takes an unexpected turn when writes about his parents going to prison for some kind of white-color crime that I didn’t really understand. He had to take over the family business while still in college and had to care for both of his grandmas who were living with his parents. The business did not do well and he and his grandmas were basically homeless at one point. He doesn’t go into detail about the crimes his parents were alleged to have committed because he says that’s their story to tell. I would love it if they wrote a book because I’m very curious to know more!

Ali narrates the audiobook himself, which I think made it funnier than if I had read it in print. Even though he’s not a comedian, his comedic timing is spot on. Recommended.