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elsa_patito's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
jonscott9's review against another edition
4.0
This wasn't a typical vacation read, but as I sat on Cape Cod and grappled early with the tragic and beautiful weight of it, I remembered that I once read Jon Krakauer's Under the Banner of Heaven while backpacking through Europe by train. Reading most of this stunning book upon returning from vaca, it definitely required a certain frame of mind to focus and alternately deal with and relish in its consequence and beauty.
Little Dog and his mother Rose are immigrants who find a range of social, economic and cultural difficulties in Hartford, Connecticut, of all places. The liquid-chemical residue from her nail-technician job mix with the sweat appearing on her "I <3 NY" shirt as Rose tries to help her son with something in their home, one of many enduring images from this book of autofiction.
Pangs of past youthful shame and desire rose up inside me as they do for Little Dog in some sections of his account of tryst after yearning tryst with fellow teen Trevor, grandson of a farm owner whose tobacco Little Dog takes a job to help pick.
To crib a line from the singer-songwriter Feist, "So much past inside my present." That's true of Little Dog, of his mother Rose and grandmother Lan, and of Vuong himself. It's true of all of us, which is why his remarkably specific experiences turn universal for many, whether non-white immigrant or not. That's not to downplay his life story; he is helping a lot of people pull back the veil of what befell or welled up in or comforted or saved them.
Too many triumphant turns of phrase and entire lines and passages in this one to pick out one or a few of them. This is poetry as prose, and I'm turning to Time Is a Mother, Vuong's latest batch of poems, directly after writing this. We're "briefly gorgeous" in this mortal coil, though thankfully, works like this are everlasting.
Little Dog and his mother Rose are immigrants who find a range of social, economic and cultural difficulties in Hartford, Connecticut, of all places. The liquid-chemical residue from her nail-technician job mix with the sweat appearing on her "I <3 NY" shirt as Rose tries to help her son with something in their home, one of many enduring images from this book of autofiction.
Pangs of past youthful shame and desire rose up inside me as they do for Little Dog in some sections of his account of tryst after yearning tryst with fellow teen Trevor, grandson of a farm owner whose tobacco Little Dog takes a job to help pick.
To crib a line from the singer-songwriter Feist, "So much past inside my present." That's true of Little Dog, of his mother Rose and grandmother Lan, and of Vuong himself. It's true of all of us, which is why his remarkably specific experiences turn universal for many, whether non-white immigrant or not. That's not to downplay his life story; he is helping a lot of people pull back the veil of what befell or welled up in or comforted or saved them.
Too many triumphant turns of phrase and entire lines and passages in this one to pick out one or a few of them. This is poetry as prose, and I'm turning to Time Is a Mother, Vuong's latest batch of poems, directly after writing this. We're "briefly gorgeous" in this mortal coil, though thankfully, works like this are everlasting.
cooper_michael's review against another edition
5.0
Words have such a unique power. They can shape stories and invoke deeply felt emotions in their organization. Ocean Vuong has mastered their power. This book was so beautifully crafted. The experience of reading this book deeply moved me and I had visceral reactions. I’m simply blown away by this. Little Dog will live in me for a while.
ashlyn_rae's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
dada26's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
lia123's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked the writing of this book. It was emotional and raw, contrasting with the beautiful descriptions. Most of the time, it worked perfectly, creating vivid images of the narrators life. However the reason I didn’t give it five stars is that sometimes it felt too different, making me lose the rhythm a bit because of confusion. Nevertheless, a beautiful book that is a must read.
megancmahon's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Spoilers!
Unsure how to feel about this one. Can definitively say I didn't enjoy it. Though I'm not entirely sure it was meant to be enjoyed.
What I liked:
Unsure how to feel about this one. Can definitively say I didn't enjoy it. Though I'm not entirely sure it was meant to be enjoyed.
What I liked:
- Some of the writing was truly beautiful. I particularly enjoyed the passages about the monarchs, which were poignant and moving
- The explorations into the opioid epidemic were moving, heartbreaking, and very well-written
What I didn't like:
- Some of the writing was beautiful. Some of it felt overwrought and like Vuong was trying just a little too hard to make things sound profound - "laughter sounds like slaughter"...I mean, really?
- Maybe it's just that poetical novels aren't for me. I found this to be disjointed, and I was missing some aspects of plot that I usually rely on in novels to make them make sense
- I wasn't sure why he didn't just call his mother what she was: abusive. I get that things are more complicated than that, but it felt a little strange to me that the tagline for this wasn't "boy writes letter to his abusive mother"
- The novel talks about "an extraordinary revelation" and there wasn't one.
- My biggest gripe about this book was the fanfare surrounding it. Some novels I read and think "boy, that truly WAS profound and said something real about human life" and this one was not it. But whatever, I realize that other folks will get something different out of it. Everyone comes to a novel with their own experiences and knowledges. But what I don't appreciate is the vague sense I get from this book that some of the nonsense written down was just "too deep for others to understand" and that only "real readers" or smart people will get it. It felt quite pretentious and vaguely like Vuong was playing a trick on us; saying things that were deliberately opaque just so everyone could pretend it was profound and keep pretending the emperor wore no clothes
Yeah. Or, maybe it really was profound and I just didn't get it. Either way - novels don't have to be happy, but I do feel like they should be interesting and enjoyable to read (How Much of These Hills is Gold is a great example) and this one...wasn't.
becky_boodles's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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
4.0
The prose of this book was beautiful, and unlike anything I’ve read before. However, that uniqueness did make it difficult to follow at times but overall it is a stunning read.