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emilia_digi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, Abortion, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and War
Minor: Vomit
margozaldivar's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Abandonment, and War
Moderate: Drug use
artemisg's review
- 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? Yes
4.75
This book is written as a letter from a son to a mother, telling the story of his life intertwined with his family history. As a family “born from war”, their history is turbulent and filled with tragedy. This tragedy made my heart hurt for quite literally everyone involved. But, the novel continued, diving into the beauty of loving and living, and the family became one “born from beauty”. The beauty they were born from has been directly transferred into the pages of this novel. I was somehow manipulated into loving and caring for seemingly unsympathetic characters because no one in this novel was truly unsympathetic.
Weirdly, it felt like a privilege to read this book. It was very intimate. I felt like I was crawling into Vuong’s brain and having a rummage through his memories. I loved how fractured some of the prose and ideas were; this made it feel like an actual stream of consciousness, a real letter to a real loved one.
Anyway, this review is borderline incoherent; all I can say is that this book is beautiful. Nice work.
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Minor: Transphobia
blueberry0531's review
- 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
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Grief, Abortion, and War
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Racism, Transphobia, Vomit, and Pregnancy
claudiamacpherson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Cancer, Genocide, Homophobia, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Vomit, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
laughingrecord's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Racism, Medical content, Abortion, Death of parent, Alcohol, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Homophobia, Transphobia, Blood, Excrement, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
branalecks's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Child abuse, Homophobia, and Physical abuse
Minor: Transphobia
sadiefc's review
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Sexual content, Abortion, and War
Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Car accident, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Colonisation
tea_tamai's review
- 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? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Grief, and War
Moderate: Cancer, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Terminal illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Transphobia
deadpoetlaina's review
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Drug abuse, Racism, and Sexual content
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Transphobia, and Abortion
Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis