We will be discussing Elaine Castillo’s America is Not the Heart. Told through the lens of a single family, Castillo brings the reader in, her words depicting the complexities of the everyday, family, love and self. Illuminating the intricacies of past and present and reconciling life in America, Castillo incorporates languages such as Tagalog and Ilocano and uses flashbacks to tell Hero’s story prior to leaving the Philippines.