Reviews tagging 'Grief'

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

358 reviews

booksonadventures's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad slow-paced

• 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

3.5

 I'd like to summarize this book with a sentiment shared during our book club discussion, that OEWBG is beautiful, powerful, and widely recommended, and yet it’s hard to say that this book was enjoyed. It's painful. Categorizing this book as fiction does nothing to loosen the knot in my stomach that Vuong conjured with his words. I don't have to ask if these stories are real, because I know that whether or not this book is autobiographical, these stories are REAL to someone, somewhere.

I struggled with OEWBG in the beginning, I tend to be a fast reader and the lyrical sentences felt awkward and jumbled in my mind. I decided not to force it and ended up at the book club unfinished, where someone recommended I try the audiobook and WOW, WHAT A DIFFERENCE. If you also struggle to read slowly, I cannot recommend the audio enough. Vuong narrates his own work, with a cadence that mirrors spoken word poetry. It's exquisite.

What really stood out to me with OEWBG is the way that Vuong plays with language through definition, homonyms, and metaphor. The result is a unique performance, where you can feel the narrator searching, yearning for connection—with his mother, his lover, his Vietnamese roots, and his home in America. An example: "What I really wanted to say was that a monster is not such a terrible thing to be. From the Latin root monstrum, a divine messenger of catastrophe, then adapted by the Old French to mean an animal of myriad origins: centaur, griffin, satyr. To be a monster is to be a hybrid signal, a lighthouse: both shelter and warning at once."

Still, I never really connected with this one as much as I was hoping but I appreciate the artistic and creative narrative structure.

Final thoughts: 👍🏻 Recommended. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, and Grief

josie9's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

• 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

4.75

Absolutely speechless, Vuong’s writing is truely ingenious, authentic and so freaking devastating 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

aworldinpages's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A

3.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, and Grief

fynnnnnn's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Excrement, Alcohol, and War

mariafatima's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

as a first gen asian immigrant, this book hit so close to home. first, i need to praise ocean vuong’s splendid writing. he is a literary genius who writes words that hold so much power. every line in this book is poetic and absolutely beautiful. 

this book explains the hardships of immigrants, the dynamic between many asian families, the way trauma haunts families for generations… this book presents a person who tries to navigate life when it throws them challenges after challenges. i felt seen through this book. this is a read i will never forget—it will forever occupy a special space in my thoughts & my heart. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, and Abandonment

naivewildflower's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Mental illness, Grief, and War

bandysbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

I ended up reading this book due to a buddy read and let me tell you, I am so happy I did! This book was gorgeous. Ocean Vuong is a poet and this is sort of a stream of consciousness told in a letter to his mom about his life. He covers identity, sexuality, immigration, prejudice, trauma, sex, and more. For such a short book, it's remarkable. 

The poetic influence on this book could've been overdone, but I felt like it was just perfect. Vuong talks about a lot of dark and difficult things and it contrasts beautifully against his prose. The writing flows so smoothly and keeps you really engaged. 

I also could vividly imagine Vuong as a young child and into adulthood. There are so many scenes that come alive...him as child translating for his mom and grandma, him dealing with bullies at school, him finding confidence in himself as he grows. Each scene is relatively quick, but the impression was lasting. 

Usually, I end with a qualifying statement about who might enjoy reading this book....but I'm just going to end this with...I highly recommend this. PERIOD. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War

Added trigger warning that I’m not sure what category it falls into…sex work to survive poverty and war.

itworksforpiiigs's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

• 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? Yes

3.75

his use of language is emotive and powerful. The ideas touched on are so important, and I cried. At some places and towards the end I feel it drags/ is hard to follow. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, and Grief

smol_berry's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Terminal illness, Grief, and Alcohol

lushily's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Brief thoughts: This is simply a stunning book. The writing is an absolute joy to read, gorgeously haunting. I went insane highlighting this book, finding myself highlighting the entire book haha. Narrative-wise I could have used a bit more but if taken as a book of poetry it is perfectly exquisite. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Grief, and War

One of the most emotionally nuanced, empathetic books I've ever read about parental trauma and cycles of abuse.