The Middle of Everywhere by Mary Pipher

ISBN:9780156027373
About the book:

Over the past decade, Mary Pipher has been a great source of wisdom,
helping us to better understand our family members. Now she connects us
with the newest members of the American familyrefugees. In cities all
over the country, refugees arrive daily. Lost Boys from Sudan, survivors
from Kosovo, families fleeing Afghanistan and Vietnam: they come with
nothing but the desire to experience the American dream. Their
endurance in the face of tragedy and their ability to hold on to the virtues
of family, love, and joy are a lesson for Americans. Their stories will
make you laugh and weepand give you a deeper understanding of the
wider world in which we live.
In exposing us to such vital and vitally instructive stories, The Middle of
Everywhere profiles Piphers hometown of Lincoln, Nebraska, which is
today a microcosm of the nations refugee situationindeed, people who have fled some of the
worlds most oppressive regimes now reside in Lincoln. As she reveals here, Pipher has worked
on behalf of these refugees in schools, social service agencies, and homes as a cultural broker,
teacher, therapist, and friend. Her timely, candid, well-researched study employs sensitive
firsthand accounts as well as clear-headed, able reportage to move beyond the headlines,
revealing the trials and errors, hopes and dreams, and joys and frustrations of refugees from
around the world.
The Middle of Everywhere moves beyond the headlines into the homes of refugees from around
the world. Working as a cultural broker, teacher, and therapist, Mary Pipher has once again
opened our eyesand our heartsto those with whom we share the future.
About the author:
Mary Pipher, Ph.D., is the author of three bestselling books, including Reviving Ophelia, which
was on the New York Times bestseller list for more than two years. She speaks all over the
country and has received a presidential citation from the American Psychological Association.
She lives in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Discussion Questions:
This reading group guide, keyed specifically to the book, will help readers of all backgrounds
and abilities explore the phenomenon of refugee settlement in America today.
READING AND UNDERSTANDING THIS BOOK
1. In the Foreword to The Middle of Everywhere, Mary Pipher discusses how September 11
changed the way she thought and felt about this book (since she had finished writing it just
before that tragic Tuesday morning). How did September 11 affect this author? And what does
she mean by saying that The Middle of Everywhere is my way to chop wood and carry water?
2. In the books Prelude, Pipher points out an striking image she saw on Ellis Island: a tree
whose branches were countries and whose leaves were words. Revisit this passage. Which of
these words did you recognize? Which were new to you? And what point is Pipher making about
the links between language, culture, and experience in America?
3. What do we learn in the opening pages about the setting of this book, the Midwestern city
where it takes place? Look again at Piphers description of contemporary Lincoln, Nebraska (in
Chapter 1). Where does the books title come from? How has Lincoln changed in recent times?
And why has it thus changed?
4. What is a refugee? How does the United Nations define one? (See Chapter 1.)
5. Near the conclusion of Chapter 2, Pipher writes: There are two common refugee beliefs about
America. Identify these two beliefs, explain why refugees hold them. Are they true? False?
Both? Explain.
6. Linh is a young woman from Vietnam whom we first encounter in Chapter 3. After learning of
Linh and her familys ongoing adjustment to American life, what differences can you articulate
between family as a Western construct and family as a part of more traditional cultures?
7. Explain in detail why driving is so often a problem for newcomers and refugees in America.
(See Chapter 4 and elsewhere.)
8. How would you summarize Piphers experiences at Sycamore Elementary School (see
Chapter 5)? Describe the physical and educational environment of the school itself-including
Grace, the English as Learned Language teacher whom Pipher befriends-and then describe each
of the ten pupils on Piphers abridged roster. In each case, reflect on the social ability, cultural
background, and academic achievement of the student in question.
9. In Chapter 6, we sit-in (alongside Pipher) on a high school ELL class taught by a composite
instructor known as Mrs. Kaye. Why does Mrs. Kaye decide not to return to this school next
year? How do the students react to her news? And how have they changed, individually and
collectively, over the course of their time in Mrs. Kayes classroom?
10. In some ways, young adults are our most vulnerable newcomers, Pipher states in Chapter
7. Recount the stories of Thiep and of the three Iraqis so as to illustrate this key point about
vulnerability and refugees.
11. One of the women Pipher converses with at length in Chapter 8 is Nessima. Where is she
from? How old is she? What does she do in Lincoln to a earn a paycheck? What does Nessima
like about America, and what does she dislike? Describe her personality, her socio-political
views, her family, her home life, and her mixed feelings about Nebraska.
12. Why do Pipher and her husband decide to act as an American mom and dad to the family
from Kenyas Kakuma Refugee Camp? And what does being such a parent call for in this
scenario? (See Chapter 9.)
13. In Chapter 10, Pipher discusses the twelve attributes of resilience that she believes all
refugees must possess in order to adjust successfully to life in America. Looking back over this
list, which individuals from throughout the book would you assign to each of these attributes as
particularly representative or especially symbolic?
14. What does Pipher mean by the term JPI (as she writes in Chapter 12)? How does this
acronym reflect the ways in which most Americans perceive or imagine refugees today?
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS AND EXERCISES
1. The Middle of Everywhere begins with an epigraph from the writings of Willa Cather, a great
American fiction writer (who, like Mary Pipher, was from Nebraska). Reread this epigraph and
discuss what it means in the context of Piphers book as a whole.
2. Consider these remarks from the Foreword: After September 11, we are all refugees from
what was once our America. We have been exiled from a country that felt safe and calm and now
we live in a country filled with fear. We can learn from the refugees among us how to deal with
our fears and sorrows. Do you agree with this? Explain why or why not, using specific
examples from throughout this book in support of your view.
3. Pipher notes, toward the end of Chapter 1, that refugees reveal the strengths and flaws of
America. How would you support this remark? What specific examples from the book would
you cite first and foremost?
4. Have you ever heard, seen, or read the expression, Think globally, act locally? What do you
think it means? Finally, how-if at all-does Piphers book reflect this notion?
5. Part Two, Chapters 5 through 8, profiles refugees across the life cycle. What is a life cycle?
Discuss your own place within the life cycleand about how and why that place would be
different if you were forced to a) suddenly leave your home environment and b) create a new
home for yourself in a foreign land.
6. Some of Chapter 11 concerns home as a physical, emotional, intellectual, and socio-cultural
phenomenon-and also, more broadly, it concerns what Pipher calls the psychology of place.
Explore how various individuals and families depicted here represent the widely relative ideas of
both place and home. Try to compare and contrast what you can remember about the homes of
these individuals and families. Also, consider the idea of a hometown. What [refugees] need is a
hometown, as Pipher tells us. What, in your view, is a hometown? And who finds or acquires
one in this book? (You may also want to revisit the books Coda when discussing hometowns.)