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A review by marissasa
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
This book is stunningly beautiful and raw. There are really no adequate words strong enough to describe the way Ocean Vuong writes, no way to describe how his writing is so lyrical and poetic that it makes your chest both warm and shiver after you read a particularly astounding line. Every sentence and word in this book felt so intentional and charged with meaning, and it felt so deeply personal in a way that makes you want to cry at how much pain and care is behind every word written to his mother even with the knowledge that she cannot read it. The metaphors, symbolism, incredible imagery, and seamless shifting of the narration between a present moment and a past memory were all masterfully used in this book to craft a story that will definitely stick with me for a long time. There were so many hauntingly gorgeous quotes I read that made me think of things in ways I never did before, and that is a testament to how thoroughly impressive and beautiful this book was and how immeasurably talented Ocean Vuong is.
"You once told me that the human eye is god's loneliest creation. How so much of the world passes through the pupil and still it holds nothing. The eye, alone in its socket, doesn't even know there's another one, just like it, an inch away, just as hungry, as empty. Opening the front door to the first snowfall of my life, you whispered, 'Look.'"
"All this time I told myself we were born from war—but I was wrong, Ma. We were born from beauty. Let no one mistake us for the fruit of violence—but that violence, having passed through the fruit, failed to spoil it."
"You once told me that the human eye is god's loneliest creation. How so much of the world passes through the pupil and still it holds nothing. The eye, alone in its socket, doesn't even know there's another one, just like it, an inch away, just as hungry, as empty. Opening the front door to the first snowfall of my life, you whispered, 'Look.'"
"All this time I told myself we were born from war—but I was wrong, Ma. We were born from beauty. Let no one mistake us for the fruit of violence—but that violence, having passed through the fruit, failed to spoil it."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, and War