Leslie RubinkowskiMeurkens, Carolina2024-07-222024-07-222024-04-01http://hdl.handle.net/11603/34899HOW WE CAME TO BE is an autobiographical essay collection by Carolina Meurkens, exploring her coming-of-age as a first-generation American during the Obama and Trump presidencies. The collection delves into the complex narratives of her Afro-Brazilian and Dutch-German heritage, reflecting on the interplay between familial duty and personal identity. Through essays that span diverse settings—from 1950s rural Brazil to post-9/11 New York City—Meurkens confronts hidden family secrets, cultural expectations, and the impact of her father's jazz obsession on her biracial identity. As she navigates adulthood and motherhood, she seeks to redefine values and embrace an expansive queer life. Positioned within the contemporary literary landscape, HOW WE CAME TO BE resonates with themes of heritage, ancestry, and collective liberation, appealing to readers interested in cross-cultural memoirs and the evolving discourse on identity among younger generations.148 pagesen-USAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United Stateshttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/memoirpersonal essayidentityqueer representationImmigration storiesBiracial identityCreative nonfiction -- Theses.Text