Reviews tagging 'Car accident'

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

147 reviews

novella42's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• 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

5.0

I can still hear Vuong's gentle, relentless voice when I read quotes or pages from the hardcopy I finally picked up. Sometimes I read a little to remind the writer part of my brain how lyrical words work, and what kind of writer I want to be.

His author-read audiobook performance of this powerful book was nothing short of magnificent. 

A queer Vietnamese American man writes a letter to his mother, a survivor of the Vietnam War, who cannot read. His love for her, and hers for him, is ferocious and beautiful beyond words. Vuong is a poet, but strangely, I find his novel more compelling than his poetry. Tons of content warnings, to the degree I don't know when I will ever feel mentally resilient enough in my own C-PTSD to re-read it in its entirety, but if you're in the mood for a good cry, I can't think of anything more cathartic.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Chronic illness, Blood, Homophobia, Car accident, Misogyny, War, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Alcohol, Self harm, Addiction, Sexual content, Animal death, Drug use, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Racism, Toxic relationship, Grief, Physical abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Cancer, Abortion, Death of parent, Xenophobia, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Racial slurs, Excrement, Cursing, Colonisation, Sexual violence, Miscarriage, Gore, Pregnancy, Dementia, Suicide, Sexual assault, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Classism, Child death, Rape, Abandonment, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Deportation, Body horror, Sexism, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Police brutality, Torture, Cannibalism, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Mass/school shootings, Adult/minor relationship, War, Confinement, Fatphobia, Religious bigotry, and Murder

ptitirodactyle's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Racism, Sexual content, War, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Violence

Moderate: Car accident, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Infertility, Addiction, Blood, Bullying, Dementia, Drug use, Homophobia, Cancer, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse

Minor: Alcoholism, Cursing, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Excrement, and Mass/school shootings

eve_o's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Drug abuse, Grief, Addiction, Sexual content, Racism, Alcohol, Animal death, Death, Homophobia, and Mental illness

Moderate: Drug use, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, and Confinement

Minor: Car accident and Excrement

aprilinao's review against another edition

challenging emotional slow-paced

• 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? No

5.0

This book is so beautifully written, and as a queer person raised in a Viet immigrant family, it was a very emotional read. I would love to read it again and again. I hosted a book club through my campus library on this book, and it was difficult to narrow down discussion questions: A high number of lines are filled with meaning, and the book is told in unconventional manners. We could have made the meeting so much longer and would have loved every second of it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, War, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual violence, Death, Homophobia, Medical trauma, Racism, Rape, Alcoholism, Cancer, Car accident, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Grief, and Hate crime

lucille_c's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Addiction, Blood, Gore, Excrement, Animal cruelty, Death, Drug use, Homophobia, War, Animal death, Drug abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Medical content, Terminal illness, Car accident, Child abuse, Abortion, Bullying, Cancer, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Mental illness

Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis

luckyone's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, War, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Bullying, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Death, Child death, Addiction, Cancer, Drug use, Car accident, Excrement, Medical content, War, Violence, Hate crime, and Racism

Minor: Transphobia and Cursing

bill369's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I've seen many recommendations for this book.

I like grandma Lana. I imagine her as a super pragmatic and kind woman. She had it so hard yet didn't lose her humanity. Praiseworthy.

A homosexual Vietnamese-American writes a letter to his illiterate mother trying to make sense of their bond. Vietnamese war and many issues related to it are included. Good book and theme, but still it didn't make that big of an impression on me.

Page 60, memory.
 

Mami. Kdysi jsi mi řekla, že paměť je volba. Kdybys ale byla bůh, věděla bys, že paměť je povodeň.

 

The end was mediocre.

I could get around without reading this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Death, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Abortion, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse

Minor: War, Car accident, Homophobia, Cursing, and Terminal illness

average's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Addiction, Car accident, Dementia, Domestic abuse, War, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Cancer, Death, and Sexual content

emmafstover's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug use, War, Child abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Homophobia, Xenophobia, Racism, and Addiction

Minor: Car accident and Animal death

tctimlin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

5.0

More of a prose poem than a novel.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Cancer, Drug use, Medical content, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Addiction, and Car accident