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Reviews tagging 'Transphobia'
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous - Di Semesta Ini Kita Pernah Gemilang by Ocean Vuong
43 reviews
swifterel22's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book moves you, shows you a horrible but very real in this world reality. The sentences were written so gorgeously that I couldn't help but highlight many of them and I felt like in some parts this novel read more like poetry.
I am so glad I finally got to reading it.
Graphic: Death, Grief, Drug abuse, Drug use, and War
Moderate: War, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Drug use, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Homophobia, Ableism, Physical abuse, Outing, Grief, Death of parent, Cultural appropriation, Racial slurs, Bullying, Racism, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Dementia, and Violence
Minor: Child abuse, Transphobia, Cancer, and Abortion
aksmith92's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Much of the novel is about Little Dog's relationship with his mother, Rose, and her mother, Lan. There is an intricate discussion about their familial affairs and what it took the women to survive for Little Dog to be writing this letter. Then it's also a pseudo-love story about Little Dog and Trevor, a boy he works with on a tobacco farm during the summers. There is a little bit of grief, love, and hardship throughout this novel, and you can feel Ocean Vuong's poetic side coming out as he describes Little Dog's complicated life. Honestly, it's a story about nothing, yet about everything for someone like Little Dog. It intertwines addiction, violence, and a plethora of trauma into a novel that shares the story of a son and his mother.
What I loved: This book was a bit haunting AND lovely - somehow both, sometimes simultaneously (but not always). Vuong was a storyteller here. There were fantastic quotes and metaphors, and Vuong knew how to share philosophical thoughts and ideas. It was a sad story and one that encompasses survival. It takes a talented writer to make this type of art, and Vuong no doubt delivered a tremendous literary and contemporary fiction book. Honestly, at times, this felt SO real, to the point that it reminded me of a memoir (maybe that also had to do with a second person). Either way, you were submerged in On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous and felt all the feels.
What could have made it five stars: The common literary fiction conundrum - the intense effort to be overly profound. I felt this only initially, but Vuong seemed to try so hard. On page 4 or around there, one quote said something like, "We held nothing in our hands but our hands." And while I understood that it was likely that they were holding each other's hands, it just made me roll my eyes.
My only other qualm was the structure. I know what Vuong was doing, and Vuong knew what Vuong was doing, as mentioned in the novel a couple of times in the letter - Little Dog knew his writing was a bit all over the place. However, it took a lot of work to immerse myself in the story because of the back-and-forth timelines, especially between paragraphs with no apparent cadence. Part II had more narrative style than the others; otherwise, linking story pieces took a lot of work. It made it hard to connect with the plot itself.
Regardless, this book was undeniably moving, genuine, and wholehearted. The impactful pieces of the story, like the aftermath of war, an opioid crisis and addiction, and sexuality, were incredibly well done, and I think this book is an essential read. The structure makes it a bit challenging for a novel, but the storytelling is ultimately worth that brief confusion.
Graphic: Cursing, Racial slurs, War, Physical abuse, Cancer, Child death, Homophobia, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, Abortion, Pregnancy, Racism, Domestic abuse, Rape, Death, Drug abuse, Alcohol, Mental illness, Sexual content, Addiction, Toxic relationship, Grief, Violence, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Gaslighting, and Drug use
Moderate: Car accident and Classism
Minor: Misogyny, Transphobia, and Sexism
Rape is not discussed as a rape, but it is assumed.readingtempeh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Drug use and Death
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Racism, Cancer, Homophobia, Drug abuse, and Addiction
Minor: Suicide, Grief, Pregnancy, Abortion, Transphobia, and Outing
fayemomodu's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Minor: Transphobia, Gun violence, Addiction, War, Alcohol, Suicide, Racism, Abortion, Sexual content, and Mental illness
earthsigil's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Sexual content, Abortion, Drug abuse, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Mental illness, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Racism, War, and Homophobia
Minor: Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, and Transphobia
caroisreading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I'm glad I didn't give up on this. I'll keep thinking about this memoir forever.
You'll like this is you appreciate memoirs, are in a mentally good place with darker content in real-life context, Asian American stories, LGBTQIA+ perspectives.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Alcohol, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Homophobia, Death, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Abortion, Gun violence, Cancer, Physical abuse, Racism, and Transphobia
melanieripple's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Addiction, Abortion, Drug abuse, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Cancer, Domestic abuse, War, Death, Grief, Racism, and Mental illness
Minor: Transphobia
peggymay's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Grief, Physical abuse, Violence, Drug abuse, Sexual content, Death, Mental illness, Cancer, Abortion, Xenophobia, Bullying, Drug use, War, Child abuse, Homophobia, Domestic abuse, Animal cruelty, Racism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
Moderate: Drug abuse, Racism, Death, Drug use, Child abuse, Homophobia, War, Domestic abuse, and Addiction
Minor: Domestic abuse, Abortion, Car accident, Bullying, Racism, Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Transphobia, Animal cruelty, Vomit, Animal death, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Drug use, Grief, Racial slurs, Homophobia, War, Cancer, Excrement, Addiction, Child abuse, and Blood
amandasbokhylla's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Sexual content
Moderate: Transphobia, Abortion, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, and Drug use
hoiyan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“You’re a mother, Ma. You’re also a monster. But so am I—which is why I can’t turn away from you. Which is why I have taken god’s loneliest creation and put you inside it.”
"Our mother tongue, then, is no mother at all—but an orphan. Our Vietnamese a time capsule, a mark of where your education ended, ashed.”
“Sometimes being offered tenderness feels like the very proof that you’ve been ruined.”
“Afterward, lying next to me with his face turned away, he cried skillfully in the dark. The way boys do.”
“Maybe in the next life we’ll meet each other for the first time—believing in everything but the harm we’re capable of.”
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Alcohol, Grief, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Homophobia, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Racism, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, War, and Racial slurs
Minor: Transphobia
i do want to make a warning note of multiple explicit sexual scenes between two teenage boys