Americanized: Rebel without a Green Card

Americanized: Rebel Without a Green Card

• Genre: Nonfiction; memoir
• Originally Published: 2018
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 1030L; grades 9-12
• Central Concern: In Americanized: Rebel Without a Green Card, Sara Saedi shares her personal journey as an undocumented Iranian immigrant growing up in America. The central conflict revolves around her struggle to navigate dual identities and the challenges of being caught between two cultures. From discovering her undocumented status at age 13 to her eventual path to American citizenship, Saedi's memoir explores ideas on immigration, belonging, and self-acceptance.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Immigration issues, racial discrimination, family separation, cultural assimilation, personal identity

Sara Saedi, Author

• Bio: Iranian-born American author known for this memoir and her work as a television writer; draws from her personal experiences as an undocumented immigrant to shed light on the complexities of the immigration system and the impact on individuals and families
• Other Works: The Never Ever series: Never Ever (2016); Sometimes Always (2017); Any Way You Slice It (2018)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Guide:

• Humor as a Narrative Device
• The Power of Family Support
• Political Activism and Resisting Oppression

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Teaching Guide, students will:

• Gain an understanding of the socio-cultural and political contexts regarding major events in Middle Eastern history; consider and discuss the use of humor in narrative writing as a literary device.
• Study paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of Humor as a Narrative Device, The Power of Family Support, and Political Activism and Resisting Oppression. 
• Creatively write about a select moment from their own personal history, emulating Saedi’s ironic tone and comedic style.
• Analyze and evaluate the author’s purpose and techniques to draw conclusions in structured essay responses regarding American versus Persian ideals of beauty, the stereotypical Iranian parenting philosophy, and other topics.