Reviews

A Good Scent from a Strange Mountain by Robert Olen Butler

katecurry's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny informative reflective sad medium-paced

• 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

chealey14's review

emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

gorecki's review

3.0

There was some really good writing in this book, I enjoyed Butler's style and tone, most of the stories were moving and beautifully crafted with mostly interesting characters and plots.
However, I did feel that by writing a full book of short stories on the same topic, namely the war in Vietnam and living in the USA as a Vietnamese immigrant after the war, a lot was lost because it felt like repetition. The similarity in the stories' structure and tone of narration gave the whole book a somewhat staggered feeling - like it was starting and stopping over and over with each story. I also didn't always feel quite comfortable with the fact that a white American author tells the stories of Vietnamese post-war immigrants. As a linguist fluent in Vietnamese I'm sure he is well informed and knowledgeable, but still the stories mostly concentrated on the good life the characters had since going to America, which quite literally omitted the difficulties, racism and abuse the Vietnamese have experienced in the States.
Overall, a very nice book, even if my enthusiasm for it was diminishing towards the end.

vspinazola's review

5.0

Gorgeous, intricate writing that does what short stories do best - evoke a complicated range of feelings in a small amount of space. Most of the perspectives on Vietnam are covered - North Vietnamese and South Vietnamese still living in Vietnam, born to American soldiers, or living in New Orleans and South Louisiana. Vietnam vets. Women and men. Every story was fabulous and stands on its own - my favorite was the one about a S. Vietnamese man employing Voodoo on his cheating wife. This is one of the best short story collections I've read in a long time.

bese199's review against another edition

5.0

The characters and their stories are unique and powerful. Masterful short story form. I enjoyed this book immensely.

ahubbard10's review

2.0

I might have loved this book if I didn’t find out it was written by a white man, even though it presents itself as an own voices Vietnamese perspective of the Vietnam war. Finding that out completely shifted my view of everything, because suddenly the cultural and spiritual aspects felt like an outsider’s assumptions

vagueillusion's review

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

graywild's review

adventurous challenging reflective fast-paced

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

1.0

a collection of stories with characters from Vietnam.  The book is written ok but each story is a little vignette of someone who came from Vietnam and now lives in America (in New Orleans).  I  just had a hard time getting into any of the stories

skribobby's review

4.0

Somewhat repetitive but very readable short stories that occasionally took me to a state where I felt pangs in my heart and excitement for characters in front of me. More like 3.5 stars since those moments only happen with a third of the stories.

supkevs's review

emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75