Reviews with content warning for Torture - Things We Lost to the Water

Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Things We Lost to the Water by Eric Nguyen

5 reviews

mirandyli's review

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

This was a beautifully written book. As I was reading it, I thought it was a memoir or an account of the author's life. However, while it is based on the author's mother's life, I was surprised to learn that the book is completely fictional.

I was very surprised to learn that the author did not grow up in New Orleans. The depictions of New Orleans and the gulf coast were so accurate. Mardi Gras, Catholic charities, Versailles, Chef Menteur, Grand Isle, Southern Decadence, Hurricane Katrina, eating cake at Gambino's, "there's nothing in the east or in Metairie," it's important to know how to swim in case the city sinks. One of the funniest moments in the book was when the mother thought, "What is wrong with this city?? What is wrong with these people??" Also: "Southern decadence is like gay Mardi Gras." "What’s more gay than Mardi Gras?" "Southern Decadence." I laughed out loud.

There are multiple narratives, the sweetest being the younger brother's, who is coming to terms with his queerness. The older brother, who remembers his father, is more troubled at first, skipping school and joining a gang. The younger brother is less troubled at first, but still carries generational trauma. Both are inherently very loving and resilient. The journey to America through the water has followed them throughout their lives. The ending gave me chills (And depression. And PTSD).

Content Warnings

jayisreading's review

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

This was a beautifully written book, and I was utterly captivated from beginning to end. Nguyen truly has a way with words as he constructs the world of New Orleans through the lens of a Vietnamese family that fled to the United States in the late 1970s. From then until August 2005, when Hurricane Katrina hit. Nguyen takes great care to make sure that the reader gets to know each family member, Hương, Tuấn, and Bình/Ben. The chapters were laid out in such a way that there was a good balance of each character’s point-of-view of the world around them, as well as their understanding of themselves.

The writing in Things We Lost to the Water is absolutely gorgeous, with stunning imagery and lyricism. Language is especially powerful in this novel, as Nguyen weaves Vietnamese and English together that adds to an already lush story, showing the intimacy of Vietnamese within the family and community; it’s a way to carry their heritage, similarly to many other immigrant families.

I would have loved if this book was a little longer, especially because the second half of the book⁠—especially the final chapter⁠—felt a bit rushed. Despite this, it was still a powerful read. I really look forward to future works by Nguyen.

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afiya_a's review

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slow-paced

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

3.5

Nguyen moves between characters and across time in a way that felt really accessible and easy to follow. I also love how grounded this novel is. It’s discussion of things like immigration, assimilation, gratitude, and what it takes to hold a family together felt realistic - no unbelievable plot twists or way-too-tidy endings. That said, I think a lot of the characters’ motivations were a little underdeveloped. I finished the novel feeling like I needed a little bit more about their interior worlds to understand why they made certain decisions (or why I should care about them). Overall I think this was a really strong debut, and I think this author could write one of my favorite books one day. I’m definitely interested to read whatever he writes next!

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deedireads's review

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emotional 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? Yes

4.0

All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.

TL;DR REVIEW:

Things We Lost to the Water is a beautiful novel with excellent writing and full characters., about the post-war Vietnamese immigrant experience. I liked it a lot.

For you if: You like multi-POV literary novels.

FULL REVIEW:

Big thanks to Knopf for granting me a review copy of this book via NetGalley! It was beautiful. I really liked it.

Things We Lost to the Water follows three characters: Huong, who fled Vietnam during the war and came to New Orleans, and her two sons, Tuan and Binh (Ben). We follow their lives over the course of years, from right after Huong arrived in 1978 to Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Looming behind everything is Huong’s husband and the boys’ father (or perhaps the idea of him), who was supposed to join them in the US. What follows is a story of heartbreak, growth, hope, memory, family, coming of age, and home.

There’s no denying that Eric Nguyen is an excellent, beautiful writer. There were two chapters in particular — one about halfway through and the other at the very end — that took my breath away. They spin around and around, dizzying, suspenseful, and rich with emotion. And the characters in this novel are gorgeous, full and endearing; you root for all of them. I did enjoy the first half of the book better than the second half (which jumps forward in time much more quickly), but the ending chapter was more than worth it. I’ll be watching for what Nguyen writes next, for sure.

CONTENT WARNINGS:
Anti-Asian racism and racist slurs; Bullying; War violence and torture (off screen); Homophobia

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kyrstin_p1989's review

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Beautifully sad story of the things we leave behind — both intentionally and out of necessity — when faced with trouble, trauma, and heartache.

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