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sophia_zaytoun_habib's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Minor: Alcoholism, Violence, Body shaming, Alcohol, Abandonment, Vomit, Gore, Toxic friendship, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, Murder, Excrement, Sexual harassment, Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Death, Classism, Body horror, and Blood
georgiesutton's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I normally like multiple time lines and characters but this was too much back and forth with too long in between timelines to follow and make the connections. Not having dates, just using time before and after, and the sheer number of characters made this quite confusing. I felt there wasn't enough plot or chronology to carry it and I felt that meant some of the connections didn't pack the punch they should have because I forgot who was who etc.
Most of the characters had no redeeming features although the female experience was centred which was interesting there were so many women I would have liked more of.
Some of the writing was beautiful but also sometimes dragged with several long drawn out descriptions of unpleasant men getting drunk and making women uncomfortable for no real purpose.
I'm also really frustrated that
Overall this was eerie and atmospheric but not enough plot for me with hugely dislikable characters.
Moderate: Alcohol, Body horror, Self harm, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Blood, Death, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Sexism, and Sexual content
nialiversuch's review
- 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? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Addiction, Excrement, Blood, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Death of parent, Sexism, Colonisation, Death, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Abandonment, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Classism, Body horror, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Rape, Eating disorder, Adult/minor relationship, and Incest
radfordmanor's review
- 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? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Medical trauma, Murder, Rape, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Classism, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Cultural appropriation, Body shaming, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Grief, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexism, and Toxic friendship
tamara_joy's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
Graphic: Colonisation, Body horror, and Death
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Minor: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Racism, and Rape
writingcaia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Using family trees and native Vietnamese myths and folklore, the author tells the story of several characters to encompass such a large part of Vietnam’s most recent history (going back more than 50 years), and it all starts with the disappearance of a Vietnamese American young woman with severe mental issues by the time it occurs, some of them are real some are hauntings.
Going back from there we will find the nature of the man she lives with, his brother, and most importantly the girl who was their everything when they were young. A wild girl who hunts snakes, and she’s the connection to a ghost hunter and exorcist, a man the forest chose to save from the war, to a mother without a daughter, to French occupation, to rape and serfdom.
It’s not the easiest read due to its complicated timeline, that keeps shifting, going back and forward with no great logic, but you get used to it after a while and when the dots all start connecting, when you understand that what matters are the different stories and the history, not the timeline or that one story it becomes addictive.
Not knowing Vietnam or its people I believe this is the closest I will ever get, as the book brilliantly woven a tale that encompasses so much of the culture, history, and people, also the present and how it is affected by its folklore and past.
Definitely a read I recommend, especially if you’re looking for a great read for API month.
Graphic: Drug abuse, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Colonisation, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Sexual harassment, War, Incest, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Pedophilia, and Rape
jussery's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Self harm, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, and Sexual assault
foreverinastory's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Rep: Biracial Vietnamese-American cishet female MC, cishet Vietnamese cast.
CWs: Blood, body horror (including swapping bodies and possession), drug use/abuse, death, murder, animal cruelty (capturing snakes to take venom, attempted dog kidnapping to take to a restaurant), gore, injury/injury detail, sexual assault, sexual content, sexual violence, snakes, suicide, toxic friendship, violence, xenophobia. Moderate: Misogyny, incest, rape, attempted necrophilia, colonisation, sexism. Minor: eating disorder, cursing, racism, war.
Graphic: Sexual assault, Gore, Drug use, Alcohol, Blood, Xenophobia, Body horror, Sexual violence, Animal cruelty, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Drug abuse, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Moderate: Incest, Sexism, Misogyny, Rape, and Colonisation
Minor: Cursing, Eating disorder, Racism, and War
baekchen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Everything in Build Your House Around My Body is deeply lush and alive, but most of all haunted; the land, the animals, the people, their homes. Violet Kupersmith brings the Vietnam of past and present to life with such vivid and magical imagery, it felt like I was right in the middle of it all—right there with Winnie and Binh, through everything they experienced to the final resolutions of their stories. I loved them both so incredibly much, they're so deeply flawed and felt so tangible, Binh so fiery and Winnie so ghostly. Really, I loved all the women in this book with all my heart, and I hated most, if not all, male characters with such a passion.. I wanted them all to perish! They filled me with so much rage!
All the different timelines and povs fit right where they were and made sense in the flow of the story. They're interwoven so skilfully and seamlessly, and it was so incredibly satisfying and rewarding seeing it all click into place while reading.
In other words, I loved this so so so much! It's only January, but I can still confidently say this will be one of my favourites of the year (and of all time), and I want and need everyone to read it!!
I think this is the perfect book for you if you like stories about women freeing themselves and each other told with beautiful, descriptive prose, a big serving of ghosts, revenge, folklore, snakes, and a side of history and nature.
Graphic: Body horror and Drug abuse
Moderate: Incest, Sexual assault, Misogyny, and Rape
Minor: Eating disorder
annreadsabook's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
At the highest level of abstraction, Build Your House Around My Body is about 22-year-old Winnie Nguyen, a young Vietnamese-American woman employed at an English language academy in Saigon who suddenly goes missing—the culmination of years of events unbeknownst to Winnie herself. The jacket cover describes the novel as "part puzzle, part revenge tale, and part ghost story," and I think that's probably the best way to concisely summarize this book. Honestly, though, I don't want to give too much away here because I thoroughly enjoyed going into this book with pretty much only the jacket cover's explanation to inform my expectations (and let me just say, I really was not prepared for what was in these pages)...
After briefly seeing a couple (spoiler-free) reviews of this novel, I decided to give it a go and I absolutely do not regret it. Build Your House Around My Body is a whirlwind spanning the course of over half a century of Vietnamese history, from haunted rubber plantations to Saigon nightclubs. Although I'm sometimes annoyed at novels that force the reader to switch perspectives between characters, Violet Kupersmith does a fantastic job of weaving together various stories across multiple decades such that it was hard for me to put this book down. The arrangement of these various characters and timelines adds to the sense that the past is very much alive today—in more ways than one might think. Kupersmith's novel additionally considers the ways in which women have been mistreated, subjugated, and considered disposable (that's where the revenge comes in).
If you're a fan of magical realism, horror, or historical fiction, I highly recommend this book!!
Graphic: Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Sexual content
Moderate: Colonisation
Minor: Eating disorder