First Gen

“FIRST GEN is a gift to all of us--the children of immigrants who have longed to read a story like ours in books. With vulnerability and transparency, Campoverdi gives us special access to so many setbacks, triumphs, and hard-won lessons as a First and Only. Every Latina hoping to end cycles of generational trauma must read this immediately.” 
 

“FIRST GEN is a luminous achievement, one of the most moving debuts in memory… Campoverdi transforms the furies, hypocrisies and disappointments of the American dream into a survivor’s song of surpassing poignancy… this is literary love medicine, a book you will not soon forget.”

"Intimate and unflinching, First Gen reveals the very real human and emotional costs to living the "American Dream." Alejandra Campoverdi shines a guiding light for fellow "First and Onlys" who struggle to overcome systemic barriers while detangling generational trauma. No discussion of America's supposed meritocracy is complete without consideration of this book."
 

"I wish this book existed when I was a first generation student navigating the alienating world of academia and the mostly white workplaces thereafter. Campoverdi’s writing is honest, healing, and empowering. First Gen has made me feel seen and less alone."
 

"A profoundly moving story of how one woman grew to appreciate that the painful challenges and self doubt inherent in being the first and only, were also the source of her extraordinary superpowers. First Gen will inspire countless readers to follow in the path she blazed."

"Alejandra is the definitive voice for first generation young people who maintain their heritage while achieving their ambitions."

“FIRST GEN captures the emotional and physical agility required to break generational glass ceilings. Alejandra’s captivating memoir reminds us to be bold and brave on race relations be it in the boardroom or the Oval Office.”

"This is a beautiful and powerful book. But, more than anything, it is a truthful one. Campoverdi's life is, in a way, a reflection of everybody's dream in America. She could have told us about all she has achieved—and then suggest that, if she did it, you can too. Instead, courageously, she tells us how difficult it was: that there is a price to be paid when you are the 'First and Only'.”

"I felt like I found home when I read Alejandra Campoverdi's book. First Gen was written for the person who is looking for connection, understanding and inspiration. I laughed, I cried and I felt understood. Being a "First and Only" can often be isolating but reading this book affirmed that we are not alone on this journey. Let this book be a calling to all of us who have been the one and only in the room, at the table, in the class and at the podium to come together to form the community that we are often missing but so badly need."

“So much resonates in FIRST GEN—from the conflict of achieving the impossible as a ‘first’ in your family while constantly being pulled back into the drama of dysfunction, to the paradox of having magical breakthroughs on the worst days of your life. Every young person should read this book to understand how to fulfill their dreams while cleaning up generational baggage, to ultimately heal and finally find their true selves.”

“FIRST GEN lays out the challenges and contradictions of being a 'first and only’—may others walking a similar path find hope and inspiration in her story."
 

“Alejandra Campoverdi, with piercing insight and unflinching candor, has written a book for our times––capturing the American dream as experienced by immigrants and their children who are remaking America. Her story may be one-of-a-kind, but the lessons she learned and imparts are universal.”