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clarmentine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
one of the things i found bothersome within the story was–what i felt–the lack of dimension we see in little dog. it might just be me, but i did feel like i wasn't able to thoroughly connect with him as a person completely. there was more monologue from either rose or lan than dialogue between ld and everyone and i just wish he would've spoken more, even if we were technically in his head the entire time.
although i previously mentioned i wasn't with those who found his writing too flowery, i do think there were some words strung together just for the sake of being said. however, i wouldn't say it was a pattern throughout the book and only a couple parts sprinkled all over. at one part of the book, i had to pause and write in the margin,
my favorite thing about this is that every character–apart from trev's dad–was either likable but flawed, or unlikable but with redeeming qualities.
i have so so so so so many favorite quotes from this book it's actually insane. i tabbed like, almost every page and now i'm almost out of tabs. you will pay for this, ocean vuong. my absolute favorite line that i think i'll remember for the rest of my life is:
When does a war end? When can I say your name and have it mean only your name and not what you left behind?
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Death, Homophobia, Racism, and Violence
nothingforpomegranted'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
3.5
Ocean Vuong is undeniably a poet, and I underlined more passages in this book than I have in a long time, appreciating his lyrical language and the way he carried metaphors across chapters. Perhaps my favorite quotation of the entire novel is this paragraph from the last page, pulling together all of the animal metaphors Vuong used throughout the novel in one concise sequence:
I think of the buffaloes somewhere, maybe in North Dakota or Montana,
their shoulders rippling in slow motion as they race for the cliff, their
brown bodies bottlenecked at the narrow precipice. Their eyes oil-black,
the velvet bones of their horns covered with dust, they run, headfirst,
together--until they become moose, huge and antlered, wet nostrils
braying, then dogs, with paws clawing toward the edge, their tongues
lapping in the light until, finally, they become macaques, a whole troop
of them. The crowns of their heads cut open, their brains hollowed out,
they float, the hair on their limbs fine and soft as feathers. And just as
the first one steps off the cliff, onto ait, the forever nothing below, they
ignite into the ochre-red sparks of monarchs. Thousands of monarchs
pour over the edge, fan into the white air, like a bloodjet hitting water.
However, too often, the language veered too far away from the plot, beautiful for beauty's sake without any meaningful contribution to the story.
As for the story, Vuong addresses a lot. Though not quite chronological, the story begins with his mother's immigration to the United States from Vietnam with her mother and the baby, fleeing at the end of the war, connected to what they left behind but also to Little Dog's white soldier grandfather and to Tiger Woods. The boy grows up in a nail salon, then rides his bike to the tobacco fields, where he finds a job and self-discovery, exploring consciousness (through drugs) and identity (through sex). This, too, was where Vuong started to lose me; though the whole premise is that the mother cannot read the letter, and certainly not in English, I was mortified to read such graphic scenes in this context, and it seemed like Vuong started writing an entirely separate book, trapped in the middle of the family story.
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Racism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Toxic friendship, and War
tea_tamai'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
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Grief, and War
Moderate: Cancer, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Terminal illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Transphobia
anb2300's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Grief, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, and Death
Minor: Excrement
dandiego_01'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Drug use, and War
Moderate: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and War
Minor: Cursing and Excrement
ashleycmms's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Confinement
Ocean writing is fantastic, and I can’t believe I have taken this long to read some of their work. The way the story unfolds tells a beautiful story of tragedy and tenderness in the world. Out of this world.minibean24'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
4.5
Minor: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and War
shmorbus'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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Domestic abuse and War
gabriellegraceg'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Death, and Abortion
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Homophobia
spookieboogie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Dementia, and War
Minor: Domestic abuse, Rape, and Terminal illness