In Born a crime a few things connected with my writing that influenced the story. A few examples would be when Trevor Noah had a close friend named Teddy, and when Trevor Noah had wanted to switch classes when he liked being in class B better than class A. In both of these stories they have something in common, both Teddy and class B accepted him for who he was. Both of the people accepted Trevor Noah for who he is and made him feel part of a place where he isn’t judged. That is the same with my friendship group, they accept me for who I am regardless of my flaws. One of my favorite quotes in Born a Crime was in chapter 11 on page 99 “Since I belonged to no group I learned to move seamlessly between groups. I floated. I was a chameleon, still, a cultural chameleon.” This quote did connect to me, this connected with being because growing up I was also the same way. I was part of multiple groups but it didn’t feel like I was part of it. I was there from time to time but I never stayed for too long. My friend group and the habits aren’t the easiest to understand, sometimes we can’t even understand each other but that is a rare occasion. I tried to explain the characteristic traits of my friends the best I could to make sure they understand the way our group works. My friend group can get chaotic sometimes and when we are having a serious conversation about things that are affecting us we have each other’s backs. Identity and belonging haven’t always been the easiest thing growing up. I never really had many true friends, they were more of acquaintances. Growing up, we all kind of just lacked friends. So eventually we all became friends even though most of us attend different schools. The story connects with my identity because my friends influence how I am towards other people. While writing the book Trevor Noah’s very impactful writing style, it’s unique in many ways. His writing style had lots of humorous moments which also makes me want to add a lot of humor into my writing style. I am attempting to give my story a comedic effect.. I also want to make it as entertaining as possible. I adore humor, first because I like making things funny and laid back. I don’t like making my writing stiff, I like to have my personality intertwined with the writing.

Far From The Tree Soundtrack - Samantha Lerner

Long Distance Love - Little Feat This song reminds me a lot of Joaquin and his relationship with Birdie. Though he broke up with her, it was because he didn’t feel like he was enough and is constantly pitying himself. This song is about being helpless and hopelessly in love, while not really being sure what to do about it. The lyrics “and her life so sweet, I wonder do she know,” made me think of how Joaquin perceives Birdie, and how he thinks her life is so perfect and that he would just be a burden to it. The chorus also makes me think of how Joaquin is so scared to reach out for help, and just drops Birdie all together even though he really likes her. “Help wanted, but not enough, you know these times are getting rough, ‘cause no matter what I do, even pray to heaven above, all I ever get from her is long distance love!”

Picture To Burn - Taylor Swift Relatable break-up song for Grace. A song about rejection and payback, I thought would fit well for how she might have felt about returning to school. Though she didn’t directly clapback at her ex-boyfriend, she made it clear how she felt towards his friends in front of the whole school. Grace is really strong for even being able to go back to school with everyone judging her, but when Adam taunted her, she confronted him and gave him what he deserved! I love when Taylor says “state the obvious, I didn’t get my perfect fantasy, I realize you love yourself more than you could ever love me, so go and tell your friends that i’m obsessive and crazy, that’s fine;” this reminds me of how Grace probably felt right in that moment. Who is Max to call her a slut when she has quite literally gone through hell as a teenager, and has received little support from the people she loves?

I’d Like To Walk Around in Your Mind - Vashti Bunyan This is personally one of my favorite songs ever, and it’s incredibly sad. I think it would be a tribute to Peach from Grace, as the song is about someone who cares for another very deeply but can’t confront them (my interpretation, at least). In chapter 16, I think, Grace talks about how she regrets not keeping Peach, and wonders if she would have been able to take care of her. “I would disturb your easy tranquility, I’d turn away the sad impossibility of your smile,” this makes me think of why Grace put Peach up for adoption in the first place, because she thought she couldn’t give her the life she deserved. “But most of all i’d like you to be unaware, then i’d just wander away, trailing palm leaves behind me, so you don’t even know i’ve been there,” this line is incredibly sad, but I think it might have resonated with Grace. Part of her wishes she could see Peach and still have a life with her, but she doesn’t think she could be able to do it.

Liability - Lorde I think this would be a relatable song for Joaquin, who clearly often feels like a liability to everyone around him. Even when his foster parents tell him they’d like to adopt him, he is hesitant still because he feels so unloved. He pushes everyone away because he’s so afraid of being a grudge and a burden. “They say, ‘you’re a little much for me, you’re a liability, you’re a little much for me’” I think this is truly how Joaquin thinks others view him, which is upsetting. “The truth is, I am a toy that people enjoy ‘till all of the tricks don’t work anymore. And then they are bored of me,” this reminds me of when Joaquin says that he feels that he needs fixing, like he is broken and unchangeable. “I know that it’s exciting, running through the night, but, every perfect summer’s eating me alive until you’re gone, better on my own,” I think this relates to his relationship with both Birdie and his adoptive parents, and that he feels that he would just be better on his own.

You Belong To Me - The 88 You Belong To Me is a perfect love song to guide the moment when Grace, Maya and Joaquin finally feel that they belong somewhere, together. They all lack a sense of belonging- Maya longing for her mother, who feels belonging when she accepts her mother and is excited to have her home. Joaquin, who always felt unwanted, feels belonging with his foster parents who he agrees to be his official adoptive parents. Grace finally feels belonging with Peach, when she visits her and notices how much they have in common. They all too find belonging with their birth mother, as they found pictures of Melissa and realized she truly did love them. “I could tell an antique lie, full of all the things I want to hide, but that would only lead to the truth, you belong to me, I belong to you.”

Hair - Lady Gaga Maya always feels like the odd one out because she’s adopted. Her parents have red hair, along with her little sister who is a biological daughter of her parents. I think this really gets at Maya, and she wishes that she could just fit in, or accept herself for looking different than the rest of her family. I think this song highlights individuality and accepting yourself from being different than everyone else. “And in the morning, I’m short of my identity, I scream Mom and Dad, why can’t I be who I wanna be?” I’m not really sure if Maya is necessarily questioning who she wants to be, but she definitely feels lost in her identity and wonders why she has to be a stranger in her own home. “I’ve had enough, enough, enough, and this is my prayer, I swear, I’m as free as my hair, I am my hair,” I love this line because I think it really represents when Maya finally meets Joaquin and Grace and sees that she isn’t so different after all. She sees that her siblings are just like her, and that she really does belong somewhere, even with her dark hair.

Thinning - Snail Mail This is a sad song to represent Maya’s depression as she struggles through her parents divorce. It’s hard to see two people you love stop loving each other, and wondering what that means for you. On top of that, she pushes her girlfriend away because she starts to doubt her love and doesn’t think that it’s enough. I think Maya was spiraling, and Thinning pretty much sums up that feeling. “Haven’t felt right in a week, and i’m thinning out, and it hurts bad, I gotta get back,” I think this is how Maya feels, especially seeing the condition her mother is in. It’s really difficult to have to deal with something like that alone and at such a young age. “I wanna spend the entire year, just face down, and on my own time, I wanna waste time.” When Claire finds out about Maya’s mother being hospitalized, she feels bad and tries to apologize because she still loves Maya. Maya just feels so hopeless and angry that she refuses Claire, I think she copes by shutting people out and forcing herself to deal with it alone.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ggYMNqRcRIgkk1LJxvHB9uLIWr0AJyJiyWz-rC1Kq5U/edit?usp=sharing