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ladysanctuary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Cancer, Homophobia, Sexual content, and Grief
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Terminal illness, Violence, Xenophobia, Medical content, and Death of parent
atsundarsingh'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
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Self harm, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
ajoyr'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, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Grief, Abortion, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
surelyinthefountain's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
It is a very heavy read, though. If you're not in the right space for that, I'd save this for another time. But it's absolutely beautiful and worth the effort, in my opinion. This has easily become one of my favorite books!
Graphic: Addiction, Cancer, Death, Sexual content, and Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Medical content, Car accident, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
sara_n's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Racism, Blood, Excrement, Grief, and Car accident
natb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Abortion, and Murder
annabella'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
3.25
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, and Grief
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Excrement
flamingxgirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Violence, and Grief
bodiesinbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Dementia, and Grief
Minor: Bullying, Vomit, and Car accident
ci_reads'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
4.0
I was so touched in a variety of ways by this book that my first reaction couldn't be formed in complete sentences: gorgeous, raw, haunting, shocking. Vuong's writing is very poetic, and may be too flowery for some, but I was extremely impressed by the true mastery of language and I loved how he incorporated the main characters feelings about language too, since as a linguist who studies language acquisition, it is abundantly clear to me that language and language ideologies are so integral to immigrant experiences ("One does not "pass" in America, it seems, without English.")
The book is written as a letter from the main character, nicknamed Little Dog, to his illiterate mother (with the assumption that she'll never be able to read it, which is why some parts are so explicit). It tells his story as a Vietnamese-American growing up in rural America, as well as interweaving the experiences of his immigrant mother and grandmother, and his complicated relationship to both women. The content jumps around a lot, but I didn't ever feel really lost. Rather the the quick movement from one anecdote to another felt like a natural expression of how one story and emotion leads to others in your mind.
At times, the content was very graphic and I had to put the book down and sit with it for a while before continuing. But overall, this just lends to how present the emotion is in the writing. I had to double check that it was a work of fiction and not Vuong's auto-biography because it felt SO real. I do think that people will be divided on liking the writing style, but I do highly recommend this book as a wonderful exposition on immigrant experiences in America and the multi-generational effects of war.
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Sexual content, Grief, and Death of parent