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kelly_e's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- 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
3.75
Title: How to Pronounce Knife
Author: Souvankham Thammavongsa
Genre: Short Stories
Rating: 3.75
Pub Date: April 7, 2020
T H R E E • W O R D S
Touching • Illuminating • Fierce
📖 S Y N O P S I S
How to Pronounce Knife combines 14 short stories following both immigrant and refugees trying to make their way in a new world. From language barriers to struggling to make a living this collection illuminates their hopes, disappointments, love affairs, acts of defiance and above all their pursuit of a place to belong.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I first heard about this collection of short stories after in won the Scotiabank Giller Prize (2020). Short stories aren't something I read often, yet something I'd like to explore on a more frequent basis, and this collection was an excellent place to start.
Each story has its place within the collection and they all opened my eyes to an immigrant experience I've never experienced personally. The intimate prose captured my attention and held it through each of the stories. At times I did want more from some of them. They made me stop and think about what it must be like to leave behind everything you know (oftentimes even family), and to find yourself in a place completely foreign to you.
The stories offered a mixture of humour and reality oftentimes making me feel sad and uncomfortable. It explores a wide array of topics including poverty and linguistic boundaries, community and culture, familial relationships and what it's like navigating new places. And because there is no real sense of place, this collection came across as feeling entirely universal.
How to Pronounce Knife is certainly worth picking up for the incredible writing alone, yet you are also likely to come away changed by each of the unique characters. None of the stories had that 'wow' factor, yet as a whole they speak volumes. I'll definitely be keeping my eye on this hugely talented writer going forward.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers wanting to learn more about the immigrant/refugee experience
• fans of the short story
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"To know someone's dislikes was to be close to them."
"We lose each other, or the way we know each other gets lost."
Author: Souvankham Thammavongsa
Genre: Short Stories
Rating: 3.75
Pub Date: April 7, 2020
T H R E E • W O R D S
Touching • Illuminating • Fierce
📖 S Y N O P S I S
How to Pronounce Knife combines 14 short stories following both immigrant and refugees trying to make their way in a new world. From language barriers to struggling to make a living this collection illuminates their hopes, disappointments, love affairs, acts of defiance and above all their pursuit of a place to belong.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I first heard about this collection of short stories after in won the Scotiabank Giller Prize (2020). Short stories aren't something I read often, yet something I'd like to explore on a more frequent basis, and this collection was an excellent place to start.
Each story has its place within the collection and they all opened my eyes to an immigrant experience I've never experienced personally. The intimate prose captured my attention and held it through each of the stories. At times I did want more from some of them. They made me stop and think about what it must be like to leave behind everything you know (oftentimes even family), and to find yourself in a place completely foreign to you.
The stories offered a mixture of humour and reality oftentimes making me feel sad and uncomfortable. It explores a wide array of topics including poverty and linguistic boundaries, community and culture, familial relationships and what it's like navigating new places. And because there is no real sense of place, this collection came across as feeling entirely universal.
How to Pronounce Knife is certainly worth picking up for the incredible writing alone, yet you are also likely to come away changed by each of the unique characters. None of the stories had that 'wow' factor, yet as a whole they speak volumes. I'll definitely be keeping my eye on this hugely talented writer going forward.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers wanting to learn more about the immigrant/refugee experience
• fans of the short story
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"To know someone's dislikes was to be close to them."
"We lose each other, or the way we know each other gets lost."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Hate crime, Death of parent, Grief, Animal death, Sexual content, Violence, Bullying, Child death, and Infidelity
Minor: Rape, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
chichio's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- 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
4.75
An excellent short story collection with stories that explore how uncomfortable it is to exist between two cultures. The literal only reason it’s not getting a 5 star is that some of the stories ended a little too abruptly for me—I get that might be a testament to how well this was written but there were some endings that could’ve benefitted from being drawn out a little longer.
Favourite stories:
• How to Pronounce Knife
• Randy Travis
• Edge of the World
Favourite stories:
• How to Pronounce Knife
• Randy Travis
• Edge of the World
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Grief, Racism, Emotional abuse, Classism, Death of parent, and Cursing
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