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deedireads's review against another edition
emotional
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? No
4.5
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
Ghost Forest is a beautiful, reflective little book on the immigrant experience and the loss of a parent. I thought it was really beautiful.
For you if: You like novels told in vignettes.
FULL REVIEW:
First, thank you One World for the review copy of this book on NetGalley. One World’s books never let me down, and Ghost Forest was no exception.
Sparsely written and told entirely in vignettes, Ghost Forest almost doesn’t even feel like a novel. It’s written as a reflection on the narrator’s experiences as the daughter of an “astronaut father” (one who lived and worked in Hong Kong while his family emigrated elsewhere) and his later death by cancer. It’s also an homage to the women in her family — most particularly, her mother and grandmother, whose stories she became truly curious about only after her father died.
This is a book that would be easy to inhale but begs to be savored. I did read it in one sitting, but I had to force myself to read the words slowly and give each vignette a moment to sit with me before moving to the next one. It’s worth it — if you rush through this book, you’ll get little from it. Its power is in the quiet moments, the in-between unsaid things.
I was particularly struck by the portion of the novel where she describes her father’s funeral. She and her sister experienced their family’s funeral traditions for the first time, trying so desperately to get them right while also processing the loss they’d just endured. It is hard to hold both of those things in your mind at the same time.
There is no plot here, but it doesn’t need it. If you’re a fan of literary fiction or memoir, pick this one up. What an impressive debut.
TL;DR REVIEW:
Ghost Forest is a beautiful, reflective little book on the immigrant experience and the loss of a parent. I thought it was really beautiful.
For you if: You like novels told in vignettes.
FULL REVIEW:
First, thank you One World for the review copy of this book on NetGalley. One World’s books never let me down, and Ghost Forest was no exception.
Sparsely written and told entirely in vignettes, Ghost Forest almost doesn’t even feel like a novel. It’s written as a reflection on the narrator’s experiences as the daughter of an “astronaut father” (one who lived and worked in Hong Kong while his family emigrated elsewhere) and his later death by cancer. It’s also an homage to the women in her family — most particularly, her mother and grandmother, whose stories she became truly curious about only after her father died.
This is a book that would be easy to inhale but begs to be savored. I did read it in one sitting, but I had to force myself to read the words slowly and give each vignette a moment to sit with me before moving to the next one. It’s worth it — if you rush through this book, you’ll get little from it. Its power is in the quiet moments, the in-between unsaid things.
I was particularly struck by the portion of the novel where she describes her father’s funeral. She and her sister experienced their family’s funeral traditions for the first time, trying so desperately to get them right while also processing the loss they’d just endured. It is hard to hold both of those things in your mind at the same time.
There is no plot here, but it doesn’t need it. If you’re a fan of literary fiction or memoir, pick this one up. What an impressive debut.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief
deandra_lalonde's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Terminal illness, Death of parent, and Death
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