Brother, I'm Dying is a 2007 family memoir by novelist Edwidge Danticat, published by Alfred A. Knopf. In 2007, the title won the National Book Critics Circle Award and was also nominated for the National Book Award. It won the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for non-fiction

Background

Edwidge Danticat is a contemporary author of Haitian heritage. She was born on January 19, 1969, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti to a cab driver and a seamstress. By the time Danticat was four years of age, both of her parents had immigrated to New York City to seek the American Dream. After Danticat and her younger brother were left in Haiti by her parents, she was raised by her uncle and his wife. Not knowing if she would ever see her parents again, they finally sent for her and her sibling when she was twelve years old to join them in New York. In 2002, she married Faidherbe Boyer and had two daughters.

Plot

Brother, I'm Dying is an autobiography narrative that begins in the country of Haiti and eventually ends in the United States. The author, and main character Edwidge Danticat, was born in Haiti in 1969. At the age of four she was left to be raised by her uncle while her parents moved to the United States on a work visa to pursue economic opportunities. It wasn't until the age of twelve that she was able to be reunited with her family. She falls in love, marries, and eventually has a child. Edwidge's father becomes terminally ill and she decides to write her family's life story so that it can be shared with relatives that are still living in Haiti.

Style

Brother, I'm Dying is an autobiography and memoir about a family and political history. The first-person plot features flashbacks throughout the book. The protagonist, who is also the author, goes from looking at past events to future events. She wrote a collection of facts from history that referenced official documents, memories, and story woven from past to present, to create a cohesive whole. This is a vivid sort of memoir, influenced by the author's fiction writing.

Character

Edwidge Danticat is a Haitian Native. She was born and raised in Haiti. Her father and mother left Haiti to move to the United States when Edwidge was just a toddler. She was cared for by her Uncle Joseph and Aunt Denise. In 2002, she moved to the United States and married her husband. A few years later, she received some happy and devastating news at the same time. Edwidge was ecstatic to learn that she was expecting her first child. Later that day, she discovered her father was in his last stage of pulmonary fibrosis. Her father could not communicate with his brother in Haiti, so she decided to record their story before her father's demise.

Publication history

Themes

Haiti

Immigration

American Dream Krome Service Processing Center

Healthcare

Reception

Positive reviews from Library Journal, Booklist, and Publishers Weekly. Entertainment Weekly gave Brother, I'm Dying a B+. Brother, I'm Dying was named a Top 10 African-American Non-fiction book by Booklist in 2008.