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A review by hostile
Chinatown by Thuận
challenging
funny
tense
fast-paced
5.0
Chinatown is not going to explain itself to you because it is not a tour guide. If you are not able to look past the fact that it's a novel translated from Vietnamese that was not written to explain Vietnam to a foreign audience you probably won't be able to enjoy the book. For me the spiraling, obsessive and repetitive prose captured the anxiety of displacement and loss in a way I have never experienced anywhere else. It's uncomfortable and it's difficult, it's inventive and rhythmic. I love it, I needed it.