A review by readwithev
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

emotional inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Vuong is amazing as expected. I read Night Sky with Exit Wounds and I’m not disappointed with this. It’s not only a love letter to his childhood in Hartford CT, but to his family. It’s a search for identity, a reckoning with the past, finding joy even in fleeting things, and all of life in between. I cried and smiled but was also left so stunned. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous is poetic, thoughtful, empathetic, reflective, but also full of rage, grief, and yearning.
We watch Little Dog fall in love, watch him be bullied, but also grow into himself, like skin that he would grow into. It’s beautiful and I cannot recommend enough!
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