The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears (49-90)

Summary:  So far in the novel we finally get to meet the famous Judith from across the street; Judith is a tall white woman that moved across the street from Stephanos. Many people at first thought she was some kind of social worker, landlord or tax collector; they never thought that she would actually purchase a house. Logan Circle wasn't the best place to live so it came as a shock that she was a resident. Many people looked at her as if she were some rich snob, Stephanos even looked at her stating that she was a rich lesbian before even getting to know her. Much of the attention was brought upon her because of her daughter. Her daughter, Naomi had a lighter skin color than black, but was Darker than white, which is why many people looked at her and instantly jumped to conclusions. Over time, Naomi would often visit Stephanos store, she would simply walk in and not talk, but over time their conversations had improved. Naomi was more comfortable with Stephano and often "reported the world" to him. She developed a very strong bond with him, though it was not quite apparent at first, however Naomi invited Stephanos over for Thanksgiving even though she did not let anyone in the house, the fact that she invited him showed some sign of friendship. As opposed to Judith and Naomi, Stephanos has a small flashback of his progress at the store and how even thought the years go by, somehow things still stay the same or aren't quite remembered. He also talked about his family and how his uncle had high hopes for him and always thought that he would be something great, but up until this day he still does not understand why Stephanos chose to be a store owner. He simply looked at it as him not really choosing, he had just fallen into the place and stayed with it. We also see Stephnaos small struggle and him stressing over financial problems with the store. Him and his friends went to the bar and drank to relieve from stress, they said that this is how the Americans did it, which shows that they are taking in some of the "American traits" that immigrants see and soon transform into. So, you slowly see him accepting some of the things that Americans do, but he's still struggling with America accepting him.


Quote: " A man, i told myself, is defined not by his possessions but by the company he keeps" ( Mengestu 60).
This quote really popped out during the reading, because it shows how the main character, Stephanos, believes in a persons traits, personality and overall how he/she carries him/herself. He does no think that the things that a person has is what makes the person what he/she is. This fit perfectly in the book, because after being in Judith's house for dinner, he noticed the nice leather couch, the fancy porcelain plates; the only thing is they ate on the couch which shows that Judith can also be someone that likes to be comfortable. It also showed later on that the fancy couches and plates didn't mean much to her, the only thing that stood out about her that changed Stephanos interpretation of her was the love she had for her daughter. Judith would do just about anything to keep her daughter happy; sometimes people were too busy judging her based on the materials she had as well as her daughters complexion to even notice how good Judith was and how she did not come close to the rich snob that everyone thought she was.


Reaction: So far the novel is pretty interesting, you see Stephanos kind of open up more and see a more positive/comedic side of him; especially when hes around Naomi or Judith. Their friendship, both with Naomi and Judith are getting stronger. Naomi is talking more to him and Judith is kind of looking past the lines of friendship with him now. You also get to know more about the neighborhood and how "safe" it really is. With dark allies and prostitutes around the corner, Naomi seems to act the same,she never flinches or gets scared. shes even stronger than her mother both mentally and probably physically as well. At a young age she has learned to be apart of things instead of hiding from them, she's seen and faced many of the things that happened her and simply nods her head, she makes it apart of her life instead of avoiding it and being completely inexperienced when it grabs you by surprise. She takes reality in and looks it right in the eye with no problem, which is why shes one of the best and strongest characters. The use of her age and knowledge somewhat emphasizes that taking a few steps forward wont hurt anyone. Knowing things ahead of time is good, because when it comes to you at anytime you wont be as surprised and that is what reality is; through her character you can see that she refuses to act "stupid" just because she is a kid. It kind of shows her point of view into being accepted into society early as well as Stephanos being accepted later/ at an older age; it shows both views of acceptance which is very wise and informative.

The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu (1-48)

Summary: The beautiful Things that Heaven bears so far has introduced me to three of the main characters and one special character that seems to be given little information about. The main character Stephanos is a young man that has just migrated to the United States from Ethiopia; upon arriving in America Stephanos had received a job at a nice fancy hotel as the bell boy. It wasn't his favorite job, due to the little attitude that he would feel coming from his manager. He recalled him once saying that he did not need a nickname to remind him that Stephanos was Ethiopian. From that small excerpt, you can see the small hostility that the manager has for immigrants and how hard it was for him to get used to things and try to fit in. We also meet his other two friends Joseph from Congo and Kenneth from Kenya. Together these men shared the same difficulties of being an immigrant and adapting to their new lives. Stephanos also later is able to work in a deli shop, but some days he only makes 400 dollars and others he makes absolutely nothing. Sometimes, he doesn't even open the shop and closes it early before anyone else comes in. You slowly start to see him give up and start hating America more, but in time he will hopefully have that spark that will push him to succeed past all expectations; he has the somewhat positive and relieving energy from his friends and family, but the depressing feeling of that person he lost. However, in time it looks like he will learn to let go and listen to his Friends and forget of all the burdens that America has caused him and just focus on his dreams/goals.



Quote: " This country is like a little bastard child. You cant be angry when it doesn't give you what you want" (Mengestu 6).
          This quote is very important because it somewhat highlights the obstacles and hardships that immigrants like Stephanos have to overcome. He was having countless troubles with the store as a whole and did not want to continue working anymore. It seemed as if he was slowly falling into a minor depression due to his friend leaving and business going down the drain. However, Joseph lifted him up and told him that in order to make it in America you have to be consistent and not give up when you don't get what you want.


Reaction: So far the novel is very interesting; it shows and tells the lives of three immigrants and how they are trying to fit in and be apart of the constant metaphor of the "American Dream." They all have little things that have limited them from being successful, including their ethnic background, but don't see that as a problem or a reason to just give up. Together they give wise advice to each other to keep each other going so that each and everyone of them has a chance to succeed. They came to America with a goal, they had the advantage of having cheaper utilities like gas and sought more opportunities. They each just want to be given a chance and will not give up until they are accepted into the American Dream committee.