mariahhanley's review against another edition
3.0
This book was good, but I didn’t connect with any of the stories in the way I thought I would.
natasnee's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
2.75
brettpet's review against another edition
3.0
The Sympathizer and The Committed are some of my favorite books to date, so I've been meaning to get around to the rest of Viet Thanh Nguyen's bibliography. I found the majority of The Refugees very readable but not quite measuring up to his two best novels. The short stories all follow a similar thread, concerned with Vietnamese refugees attempting to find their place in America or reconcile with trauma caused by the Vietnam War. My favorite stories were "The Other Man", which is about a refugee forming a gay relationship with a member of his sponsor family, and "The Transplant", which had the best "mystery" of stories here.
A common issue between these stories is just how abruptly they end. I'm sure it was supposed to parallel the inconclusive nature of daily life, but multiple stories leave the characters in ambiguous positions that are unsatisfying for the reader. I feel compelled to compare this collection to Te-Ping Chen's Land of Big Numbers which had stories of roughly the same length yet stellar endings for most of them (with the inconclusive ones feeling more earned).
A common issue between these stories is just how abruptly they end. I'm sure it was supposed to parallel the inconclusive nature of daily life, but multiple stories leave the characters in ambiguous positions that are unsatisfying for the reader. I feel compelled to compare this collection to Te-Ping Chen's Land of Big Numbers which had stories of roughly the same length yet stellar endings for most of them (with the inconclusive ones feeling more earned).
hereistheend's review against another edition
4.0
Nguyen writes short stories concerning Vietnamese refugees of varying ages and situations. Stories include a ghost writer visited by her dead brother, a young refugee staying with a gay couple, and a woman returning to Vietnam to visit family.
While these stories didn’t necessarily bring me to tears or change my life, they’re so beautifully written, both heartbreaking and beautiful. Each was interesting, unique, and believable, bringing an issue (such as refugees and immigration) into a very human light, allowing the “issue” to become a face. Impactful.
Simple humanity is a major theme, allowing refugees to be actual people. There are also themes of awakening sexuality, safety, acceptance of the past, and family ties.
The Color Purple reflects characters having to redefine themselves post-trauma. The Grapes of Wrath reflects the struggle of the American dream and migration. Farewell to Manzanar concerns war, racism, and refugees within their own home. “The Jungle” by Upton Sinclair raised awareness for immigrants and their conditions and rights.
In Doree Shafrir’s Buzzfeed article ‘Viet Thanh Nguyen's "The Refugees" Is The Book We Need Now’ he says, “That idea of the immigrant as being part of an American story is so fundamentally strong that I was automatically being put into that story by reviewers and critics and so on. I had to actively say, ‘No, it’s not accurate.’ We need to understand how refugees are different so that we don’t erase the specificity of their experience.”
While these stories didn’t necessarily bring me to tears or change my life, they’re so beautifully written, both heartbreaking and beautiful. Each was interesting, unique, and believable, bringing an issue (such as refugees and immigration) into a very human light, allowing the “issue” to become a face. Impactful.
Simple humanity is a major theme, allowing refugees to be actual people. There are also themes of awakening sexuality, safety, acceptance of the past, and family ties.
The Color Purple reflects characters having to redefine themselves post-trauma. The Grapes of Wrath reflects the struggle of the American dream and migration. Farewell to Manzanar concerns war, racism, and refugees within their own home. “The Jungle” by Upton Sinclair raised awareness for immigrants and their conditions and rights.
In Doree Shafrir’s Buzzfeed article ‘Viet Thanh Nguyen's "The Refugees" Is The Book We Need Now’ he says, “That idea of the immigrant as being part of an American story is so fundamentally strong that I was automatically being put into that story by reviewers and critics and so on. I had to actively say, ‘No, it’s not accurate.’ We need to understand how refugees are different so that we don’t erase the specificity of their experience.”
marajoy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
absolutely obsessed with nguyen's storytelling style and creativity. his ability to develop characters and their lives so fully & intriguingly & meaningfully in 20 pages each is stunning
thekaylie's review against another edition
4.75
guys i’ll be honest, i usually HATE short story collections and the only reason i picked this up was because the reviews on the back were really good and my parents are immigrants. this exceeded my expectations. every story has so much heart and leaves you yearning to know the end while accepting that real life doesn’t have an end. i really enjoyed the style of writing and everything was *mwah*
safsafsaf's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
kirstenwis's review against another edition
5.0
A beautiful and gripping collection! I was near the end of a stretch of working 17 days in a row, but I made time to read this because it was so good.
theinkwyrm's review
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Not a bad collection of short stories, but one that feels bland and forgettable in comparison to some others that I’ve read. Also, most of the stories felt incomplete for me, which I know is kind of odd to say given that they’re short stories but they just all felt very ambiguous, which doesn’t generally work for me in anything I read. Overall, the ones I enjoyed most in this collection were I’d Love You to Want Me and Fatherland, with an honorable mention to Black-Eyed Women and The Transplant.
catebutler's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
MENG 6510 Eminent Writers: Lahiri & Nguyen Fall Semester 2023