Scan barcode
spw14's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
cnnr876's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- 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? No
4.0
the most evocative descriptions of food! tender and short and emotional.
catherine_mack's review against another edition
4.0
Every scene is a delicious morsel of a quiet yet passionately lived life.
Savour.
Savour.
del98's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
lunaseline's review against another edition
4.0
Jag är väldigt nära att ge den här boken en ljum trea.
Sen inser jag att det är för att jag var dum nog att läsa den samma år som jag läste författarens Em.
Jämförelser leder till orättvisa.
För det här är en jättefin bok, såklart.
Bara inte lika fin som Em.
(Och: fokuset på ord/språk och maträtter gör sig inte helt väl i översättning, känslan av att missa något ligger ständigt under ytan. Jag gillar inte att missa saker.)
Sen inser jag att det är för att jag var dum nog att läsa den samma år som jag läste författarens Em.
Jämförelser leder till orättvisa.
För det här är en jättefin bok, såklart.
Bara inte lika fin som Em.
(Och: fokuset på ord/språk och maträtter gör sig inte helt väl i översättning, känslan av att missa något ligger ständigt under ytan. Jag gillar inte att missa saker.)
marblemenow's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
auriswill's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
ellephuonglinhnguyen's review against another edition
3.0
According to legend, twin brothers were in love with the same girl. The first married her. The second, choked with sorrow, left the village so his brother wouldn't notice. The broken-hearted brother walked until he was exhausted, until he was transformed into limestone. The other twin took the same road in search of his brother. He dropped dead of fatigue next to the rock and metamorphosed into a betel palm. His wife followed his tracks and in the same place was turned into a climbing vine with heart-shaped leaves, wound around the trunk of the palm tree that shaded the rock. I have often wondered how that love triangle had been able to become the symbol of a happy marriage, because the end proved so sad. I think we misunderstood our ancestors. They placed the platter of betel at the head of the procession because they wanted to warn the newlyweds of the danger of impossible loves, not the opposite. Or did they want to warn us that love can kill?
sarahboudereads's review against another edition
4.0
4,5/5
My second novel by Kim Thúy and certainly not my last. I felt deeply connected to the narrator in a way only vietnamese story-tellers can make me feel. Loved all the foods and memories depicted in the book - and loved the way that all the chapters started with a word in vietnamese and its translation in french.
*Mild spoiler*
I would have appreciated just another chapter at the end, so that it would end with Mãn's retrospective of her relationship with her culture or her heritage and not her relationship with her lover. But I guess that's just me.
My second novel by Kim Thúy and certainly not my last. I felt deeply connected to the narrator in a way only vietnamese story-tellers can make me feel. Loved all the foods and memories depicted in the book - and loved the way that all the chapters started with a word in vietnamese and its translation in french.
*Mild spoiler*
I would have appreciated just another chapter at the end, so that it would end with Mãn's retrospective of her relationship with her culture or her heritage and not her relationship with her lover. But I guess that's just me.