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Honoree of three prestigious Literary Awards, The Independent Authors Network (IAN) Book of the Year Award, the indieBRAG B.R.A.G. Medallion, and The Wishing Shelf Book Awards, Hyphened-Nation gets the resounding "Get It" recommendation from Kirkus Reviews. The book was inspired by the author's travels overseas and time spent living in the United Kingdom.
Enter the world of Hyphened-Nation: Don't Check the Box, a deep and riveting journey into America's unspoken hyphenation. This compelling literary journey throws light on the socially accepted, but rarely questioned custom of hyphenating, by ethnicity, American citizens before their nationality.
Through intensive research and her own poignant personal experiences, the author brings into the light the deeply seated effects of hyphenation, revealing its role in racism and continued promotion of stereotypes in every kind of media.
Hyphened-Nation crosses the lines of convention, inviting you to rethink the ordinary and change the question of how we think of ourselves and others. It untangles ethnicity and nationality, and calls on people to see themselves as individuals and free themselves from the fetters of expectation that society demands.
It is a clarion call for change. A call to eliminate practices that have become the norm, and to carve out a society based on compassion, fairness, and self-definition. It will be a transforming journey, leaving an indelible mark on your consciousness, giving birth to wanting to be part of a world where we remember who we are.
Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite
Hyphened-Nation: Don’t Check the Box by Nicole Draffen is a non-fiction philosophical memoir wherein the author provides insight into her transformative outlook following a spell of living in the UK. Draffen focuses on the differences she encountered as an ethnically diverse woman who is outwardly perceived as black and how this perception manifests the pigeon-holing of the hyphenated African-American label. This designation was non-existent during her time in the UK, where she was simply an American and was not compartmentalized by a double-barrelled nationality description that should not exist. This is, of course, the 'African' anterior portion of African-American. Draffen makes a compelling argument on how the hyphen further marginalizes black men and women, as well as those who are perceived to be black, and does so based on her experiences of living in two countries.
Like Nicole Draffen, I am a California girl who also lives in the UK, and I was immediately drawn to Hyphened-Nation. My maternal family is Chinese-Filipino, and I am married to a man of color. I can absolutely confirm that mixed-race relationships and melanin are almost entirely ignored in London, corroborating that Draffen's perspective of American exceptionalism does not apply to those who have their Americanism diluted with a hyphen. An interesting chapter for me was six, Notes on the English Language, where Draffen addresses formalizing the acceptance of Ebonics as a dialect. I raise the topic of this chapter to highlight the literary merit of the book and its genuine ability to provoke thoughtful, academic consideration in the sense that, while I do not personally agree with Draffen's position of Ebonics as being detrimental, the writing is a high standard. There is an incredible irony in this, where most people reading this chapter on—literally—the importance of using traditional English in its “proper” form, Draffin's credibility is heightened because of the vernacular. Would her book be received with the same consideration if the vernacular had been different? And herein lies the complex bedrock of the implied 'other' when African is a precursor to being American. I highly recommend reading this enlightening book.
