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littleghostelli'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
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and War
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: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and War
Moderate: Car accident and Classism
Minor: Misogyny, Sexism, and Transphobia
Rape is not discussed as a rape, but it is assumed.grace_madeleine's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Grief, and War
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, and Bullying
jeddicat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War
mdavis26's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and War
a1exander's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Grief, Abortion, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Violence, Excrement, Car accident, and Alcohol
deannereads'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
4.5
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, and War
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse
maxthebeetlesheep's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Self harm, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, and Pregnancy
arainey'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? No
3.5
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Abortion, Toxic friendship, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Dementia and Car accident
jayg's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, and War