Book review: “The American Dream?: A Journey on Route 66”

Shin Yin Khor’s graphic memoir “The American Dream?: A Journey on Route 66” turns out to be an unusual travelogue. Not only is it created by a comic artist, but it comes from the perspective of a young American from the so-called Left Coast who was born in another country.

Subtitled “Discovering Dinosaur Statues, Muffler Men and the Perfect Breakfast Burrito,” the book (Zest Books, 160 pages, full-color illustrations, e-book available, Amazon link) finds the Malaysian-born author trying to reconcile being an American and traveling “the other America” while leaving an admitted comfort zone in the Los Angeles area. The book is marketed as a teen and young adult volume and was in the top 10 in Amazon’s ranking in that sector for a few weeks.

Khor goes against the usual Route 66 itinerary by going west-to-east instead of east-to-west, accompanied only by a small dog, Bug, in a Honda subcompact car. Instead of sleeping in motels, they stay overnight in campgrounds or crash on friends’ couches. It’s clearly a low-budget trip.

Though admitting to some trepidation before their journey in 2016, Khor figures Route 66 is “more American than anything else” with its “tacky roadside attractions, tiny abandoned towns, little diners and motels.”

Khor’s artwork maintains a nice balance between realism and cartoon style, leavened with gentle and self-deprecating humor that proves welcome amid more serious musings. The Route 66 history described in “The American Dream?” also is well-researched and concise.

Khor admits being a former Catholic and “Jesus freak,” now a reluctant atheist. Unsurprisingly, the artist finds well-meaning Texans to be preoccupied with religion. “A lot of strangers in Texas are concerned about the status of my soul, but I’m not.”

However, the city of Amarillo blows apart Khor’s preconceived notions of middle America. That Texas Panhandle city has become a major refugee relocation center for people from Myanmar, Syria, Somalia, Iraq and Vietnam. Furthermore, Khor is surprised to find a Trump-for-president sign in one of these minority neighborhoods.

Also in Amarillo, Khor finds reassurance with the Cadillac Ranch installation. “It is a comfort that there is a place for outside art in this world.”

In Tucumcari, New Mexico, Khor becomes irked by a short phrase on a motel sign:

“American owned. AMERICAN owned. It might not mean anything to most people, but as a brown American I know exactly what that means. The term ‘Patel Motel’ is used as a pejorative, a play on the term ‘no-tell motel’ but with an extra helping of racism.”

The author finds a retort of that stereotype with the oft-praised Wigwam Motel in Rialto, California, which has been lovingly maintained by a Patel family. Khor isn’t the only one who rails against the “American owned” phrase; “Route 66: The Mother Road” author Michael Wallis has criticized it for more than 15 years.

A postscript notes Khor’s disappointment when Donald Trump is elected president not long after their journey but hints at a desire for another Route 66 trip. The author writes at the end of the trip:

“I am both exhausted and really hopeful, skeptical that the American dream still exists and awed of the potential it still holds.”

“The American Dream?” provides a thoughtful and entertaining perspective that may prove valuable to marketers and Route 66 businesses who need to draw a younger generation in the future.

Recommended.