Authentically Mexican

A Family History in Six Dishes

By: John Paul Brammer

Narrated by: John Paul Brammer

¡Hola Papi! columnist John Paul Brammer’s Authentically Mexican is the hilarious and heartfelt story of his Mexican American family in diaspora, exploring his heritage and identity through six meaningful meals.

Many Mexican American families bond over traditional foods and recipes: sweating over steaming tamales at Christmastime, chopping up vegetables for pozole, prepping tortillas with a splintery wooden block and roller. This was not the case for John Paul Brammer. His parents barely cooked, and when dinnertime rolled around, he could often find his mother and grandmother fighting over whether to dine at Pizza Hut or Golden Corral. Years later, when John Paul began to explore the role that food plays in his life, he soon realized that, while it may be unusual, he did have a culinary tradition all his own: No matter the circumstances, the story of a family can be told through the recipes and meals that have sustained it, the meals we come back to eating, time and again - for nostalgia, for comfort, for a deeper kind of sustenance.

The perfect next listen for fans of Samantha Irby and R. Eric Thomas, this unforgettable personal essay is full of both laugh-out-loud moments and poignant observations about what it means to celebrate your heritage and culture “authentically”, wherever you are - from Mexico City’s Día de Muertos parade to the Taco Bueno drive-through in Lawton, Oklahoma.

©2020 JP Brammer (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.

Decent listen

This was a really surprising lesson because I was anticipating it to talk about how to make specific foods. But instead what I got was a “fake Mexican,” as the author put it, describing what his view of being authentic meant. He didn’t know the Spanish language and he didn’t grow up eating a lot of the customary Mexican foods. So the majority of his life he felt like an absolute phony. He tried for so long to find ways to authenticate himself as a Mexican but he just kept failing. What he ends up realizing is that authenticity is who you are, at the time, with what you understand about the world and how you see it. And I really like that.

A salute to the author’s family

I loved the gentle thoughts of this almost Mexican! I live in Mexico and recognise so much that he described, from the solemn abuela to the sweet conchas. My only criticism is that it was too short - I’d love to hear more about the author, his family and his food!

Loved this!

I hope JP Brammer tells us more of his life. I look forward to the moving story.

Aonderful

This was just wonderful memoir, structured around food but about so much more. Highly recommend

enjoyable

I really liked the opened of JP, I could relate to his struggle. I am definitely going to have to try a concha!

chicanita

Grateful. We just want to belong. Selena forever! So many nuances captured in this book.

So very close to my heart

I have lost both my abuelita and my mamasita. I miss the smells of their kitchen and worry that I have become a “lost” Mexican. I love that my recipes are the family legacy I will leave my grandchildren- and just because this fourth generation is blonde, doesn’t change that they were weaned on tacitos and fijoles. Loved this book and I will listen often. Thank you

A peek into a culture

Funny, how my upbringing was similar but the “what am I made of” version. Poor white family struggling to find a cultural background. All my life, I was told by my my junior high teacher mother that we are a large part Scandinavian- only to find in my 60’s that no, we are a large part Irish. I wanted my unknown culture to anchor me, to give me a sense of belonging. It seems we all struggle similarly but different.

Super interesting mini family history

I've heard the author on NPR and enjoyed the segment. This was more of him done well. I highly recommend this little bit of modern American history.

related on so many levels

loved this short read. it resonated with me so much being mixed myself and coming from a similar family and background. This changed my perspective on so many feelings and wanting to belong and be part of our Mexican culture. Thank you!