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chaosbumblebee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
dniespal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, and War
lia_mills'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
3.5
To be honest, I found Part I of this book to be difficult to get through, in a "this feels like homework" kind of way (and this is coming from someone who usually enjoyed doing English homework).
I suspected choosing the audiobook may have been a mistake - this book uses a lot of poetic language in a way that often works on the page but can be a little exhausting to listen to, and the way the story moves back and forth across memories over years or decades, although effective in helping us understand the narrator, can be a little confusing in audiobook form.
But from Part II onwards it picked up for me - maybe I just got used to it. It's certainly an evocative story, with a lot of insights into the life of a shy, thoughtful, working-class, queer, Vietnamese-American young man, and a level of emotional depth that makes me understand why it's been so highly regarded.
Some quotes I found particularly interesting:
• "The thing is, I don't want my sadness to be othered from me, just as I don't want my happiness to be othered. They're both mine. I made them, damn it."
• "Too much joy, I swear, is lost in the desperation to keep it."
• "You asked me what it's like to be a writer, and I'm giving you a mess, I know. But it's a mess, Ma. I'm not making this up. I made it down."
Works (2) this made me think of:
• My Sister's Keeper (2004 family/medical/legal drama novel by Jodie Picoult): has a similar aspect of moving through time (although from a variety of different narrators rather than the one here), and a similar reliance on (and, to my mind, borderline overuse of) explanatory metaphor and symbolism.
• Call Me By Your Name (2007 coming-of-age novel by Andre Aciman): has a similar exploration of a secret MM relationship, from the first-person perspective of the more (comparatively) introverted partner.
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Medical content, Grief, and Abortion
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
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
gvstyris'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
I had thought sex was to breach new ground, despite terror, that as long as the world did not see us, its rules did not apply. But I was wrong.
The rules, they were already inside us.
That being said, I understand why this novel won't be for everyone. Our protagonist, Little Dog, tells his life story through a series of non-linear digressions that echo his mind's messy categorisation of 20+ years of memories. Little Dog himself notes that "I'm not telling you a story so much as a shipwreck--the pieces floating, finally legible." It's a structure quite uncommon in Western literature, utilising the Japanese narrative technique of kishōtenketsu to reject a clear plot in favor of replicating reality. Vuong's writing asked me to reconsider what it means to write a "novel," and I'm completely in awe of his creative process. I'm similarly excited to check out more of his poetry.
On an emotional level, I found Little Dog's story of coming-of-age (or as Vuong puts it, "coming-of-art") as a queer Vietnamese-American boy to be incredibly eye-opening. His empathy towards his grandmother/mother's struggles with PTSD really stuck with me, as well as his consideration of his place in wider American culture. In truth, I initially struggled to read about Little Dog's relationship with queerness because of its emphasis both on physicality/sex and trauma. I've since finished the novel, however, with an increased understanding of why we need to represent a range of queer experiences -- and do so with sensitivity.
What a read. I'll leave you with another line of Vuong's beautiful prose:
All this time I told myself we were born from war--but I was wrong, Ma. We were born from beauty.
Let no one mistake us for the fruit of violence--but that violence, having passed through the fruit, failed to spoil it.
Graphic: Addiction and Sexual content
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, and War
Minor: Child abuse and Medical content
zeldazonks'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
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Sexism, Sexual violence, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, and War
marena02'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
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation
siebensommer's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
3.5
what is a country but a life sentence?
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, and Violence
Moderate: Hate crime, Mental illness, Medical content, and War
baddgerose'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
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and War