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4.35 AVERAGE
4.35 AVERAGE
I don’t really know what to say about The Mountains Sing. I wanted to love it, but I ultimately found it one-dimensional and very conservative in its outlook. The author writes some beautiful descriptions of the Vietnamese landscape, buildings and food throughout the book, and these were my favourite parts to read. I also enjoyed learning lots of Vietnamese sayings and proverbs, although the rest of the dialogue felt over-explained and unnatural. There was little subtlety to The Mountains Sing, and the ‘war is bad, hard work is good’ message was repeatedly spelled out in black and white.
The book generally felt very childlike in its binary representations of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ people. The two main protagonists, Hủỏng and her grandmother, are almost entirely defined by their nobility and grace in the face of endless suffering, and the author paints a stark contrast between the benevolent, wealthy landowners and the ungrateful, braying mob of peasants who have come to take their land. Whilst the protagonist family constantly had their ‘goodness’ reinforced through acts of generosity and forgiveness, no mind was paid as to why the local community might be pissed that one family lived in an ancestral home large enough to house seven families. Instead, the peasants were portrayed as mean, greedy and physically ugly (except the few who demonstrated unwavering loyalty to the protagonist family). There was also an interesting dynamic where the Vietnamese communists were portrayed as mercilessly evil, whereas the American soldiers (and culture) were afforded much more kindness and nuance.
Overall this was a very politically loaded book, with in-your-face messaging about the morality of entrepreneurialism and the right to generational wealth and land. Whilst I’m not opposed to reading things which come from different political positions than my own, the lack of subtlety and one-dimensional characterisation meant I didn’t particularly enjoy reading The Mountains Sing.
The book generally felt very childlike in its binary representations of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ people. The two main protagonists, Hủỏng and her grandmother, are almost entirely defined by their nobility and grace in the face of endless suffering, and the author paints a stark contrast between the benevolent, wealthy landowners and the ungrateful, braying mob of peasants who have come to take their land. Whilst the protagonist family constantly had their ‘goodness’ reinforced through acts of generosity and forgiveness, no mind was paid as to why the local community might be pissed that one family lived in an ancestral home large enough to house seven families. Instead, the peasants were portrayed as mean, greedy and physically ugly (except the few who demonstrated unwavering loyalty to the protagonist family). There was also an interesting dynamic where the Vietnamese communists were portrayed as mercilessly evil, whereas the American soldiers (and culture) were afforded much more kindness and nuance.
Overall this was a very politically loaded book, with in-your-face messaging about the morality of entrepreneurialism and the right to generational wealth and land. Whilst I’m not opposed to reading things which come from different political positions than my own, the lack of subtlety and one-dimensional characterisation meant I didn’t particularly enjoy reading The Mountains Sing.
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Véritable pépite littéraire, un livre qui m’a profondément touché par la beauté de son écriture malgré les thèmes sombres et terribles qu’il aborde (grande famine, insurrection agraire, guerre du Vietnam, agent orange). L’autrice parvient à mêler la poésie et la violence, créant une œuvre d’une grande intensité émotionnelle.
J’ai adoré la façon dont les mots coulent, avec une douceur qui contraste avec les drames racontés.
L’intégration des proverbes vietnamiens est une des grandes richesses du livre. Ces petites perles de sagesse, disséminées tout au long du récit, apportent une profondeur culturelle. Elles donnent du relief à l’histoire, une authenticité qui nous plonge au cœur des traditions et de la mentalité vietnamiennes dans une saga familiale sur 3 générations. Ces proverbes résonnent comme un écho intemporel, liant les personnages à leurs racines, même dans les moments les plus durs.
Ce mélange de poésie, de douleur et de résilience est puissant, les mots continuent de résonner bien après la dernière page. Une lecture qui mérite la note maximale, sans aucune hésitation. Je le relirai avec plaisir et je vais aller découvrir les autres livres de cette autrice.
J’ai adoré la façon dont les mots coulent, avec une douceur qui contraste avec les drames racontés.
L’intégration des proverbes vietnamiens est une des grandes richesses du livre. Ces petites perles de sagesse, disséminées tout au long du récit, apportent une profondeur culturelle. Elles donnent du relief à l’histoire, une authenticité qui nous plonge au cœur des traditions et de la mentalité vietnamiennes dans une saga familiale sur 3 générations. Ces proverbes résonnent comme un écho intemporel, liant les personnages à leurs racines, même dans les moments les plus durs.
Ce mélange de poésie, de douleur et de résilience est puissant, les mots continuent de résonner bien après la dernière page. Une lecture qui mérite la note maximale, sans aucune hésitation. Je le relirai avec plaisir et je vais aller découvrir les autres livres de cette autrice.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked this story and I thought it was really interesting! That being said I’m very uncomfortable with the way the Americans and southern fighters were talked about in such a nuanced and compassionate lens, but the communists were portrayed and obvious monsters and villains. I obviously understand that there was real turmoil in the country following the war and I’m not acting like the party didn’t commit atrocities. But if the author could write about the southerners rape of a northern woman and still find a way to discuss their side in a nuanced way but couldn’t find a way to do that about the poor working class communists in the land reform, something’s just off?
Looking through the reviews this has already been harped on by actual Vietnamese people who definitely explain it better than I can but it was something that continuously made me very wary throughout the book, and in my opinion, explained why maybe this is the authors first book written in English.
Also didn’t love the writing style but that’s okay it was an easy read and I overall enjoyed it.
Looking through the reviews this has already been harped on by actual Vietnamese people who definitely explain it better than I can but it was something that continuously made me very wary throughout the book, and in my opinion, explained why maybe this is the authors first book written in English.
Also didn’t love the writing style but that’s okay it was an easy read and I overall enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
En bok om den förödelse människan drar med sig och om det lilla hopp om förbättring som alltid hänger kvar. Skrämmande och sorgligt.
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
- goddamn i forgot how many proverbs are in viet culture
- brings me back to my roots, always thought nguoi Bac were like enemies to nguoi Nam and in a sense they are [were] but since this book was written from the perspective of nguoi Bac it made me rethink things
- pachinko-like writing and sequence, guess it’s a more common thing among asian writers
- at least everyone reunited in the end
- war spares no one
- brings me back to my roots, always thought nguoi Bac were like enemies to nguoi Nam and in a sense they are [were] but since this book was written from the perspective of nguoi Bac it made me rethink things
- pachinko-like writing and sequence, guess it’s a more common thing among asian writers
- at least everyone reunited in the end
- war spares no one
challenging
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An AMAZING read. This book gives a perspective that as an American is definitely not something we learn or probably even think about enough. Very well written, the generational trauma as well as the family's resiliency is portrayed so well. I listened to the audiobook and couldn't hit pause. It is a very heavy read however, if you pick up this book you will follow the family through horrors of war and famine and violence, but it is obvious the author poured her soul into this book to give the most unfiltered voice to what the Vietnamese people have been through.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Medical trauma, Death of parent, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Police brutality, Abortion
Minor: Cancer, Misogyny, Colonisation
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced