Monday, September 14, 2009

Author Lauren Weisberger acknowledges TCKs

Award winning author Lauren Weisberger (#1 New York Times bestselling author of The Devil Wears Prada) acknowledges Third Culture Kids in her book Chasing Harry Winston by introducing one of the main characters to a TCK.

I was reading this "chick-lit" book on my bed a couple nights ago and came across that scene. I hope that the main character ends up meeting more global nomads.
I want to share with you an excerpt.

p.73-78 (highlighted passages which I thought was relevant)
...Paul spoke English with an American accent. He was undeniably born and raised in the States, or perhaps - at the most exotic - Canada. She was bitterly disappointed.

"I'm glad I could help. The first time I stayed here, I was a paranoid wreck. My parents used to drag us all over the world - I practically grew up in hotels - but it only took a day here to make me feel like a bumbling idiot," he said.

"Why did your family travel so much?"
"This is where I should say 'army brat' or 'diplomat's son,' but really, there's not one reason. Mostly my parents are schizophrenic about where they live, and they're both writers. So we were always on the move. I was actually born in Argentina."

"Does that make you Argentinean?"
Paul laughed. "Among other things."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning that I'm an Argentine because I was born in Buenos Aires while my parents were both working on books. We lived there off and on for a couple of years before heading to Bali. My father is English, so I'm automatically conferred UK citizenship, and my mother is French, but their citizenship laws- like their customer service- tend to be tricky, so I've never claimed that one. It may sound interesting, but I assure you, it's a colossal mess."
"It's just that you sound so...American."
"Yeah, I know. I went to American Schools my entire life, literally from kindergarten on, in whatever country we were in. And I went to university in Chicago. It kills my dad that I sound like a born-and-bred American."

Things were quite flirtatious, actually, until Emmy asked - casually, she thought- how Paul felt about kids.
His head snapped up. "Kids? What about them?"

Something about this conversation seemed to remind Paul that he was late for his previously unmentioned plans.
"Yeah, I guess. Listen, Emmy, I'm actually really late meeting up with some friends," he said, staring at his watch.

"Oh. Really? Where's home?" She realized she didn't even know where he lived.

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