Reviews

Båten by Nam Le, Ylva Mörk

michelle1113's review against another edition

3.0

A good book to read if you like beautifully written, horribly depressing short stories.

burrowsi1's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective fast-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

4.25

rhisreadstxt's review against another edition

5.0

read for readwithcindy's 2020 asian readathon!

god... what isn't there to love about this story, the way it's presented?

i read the interactive graphic novel online and knew it was a 5 star read from the beginning. i love being immersed in a story and this truly hit all the marks for me. the art is beautiful, the sound design is amazing, the use of reader interaction and production is astounding. for example, there are moments in the first chapter where the boat is rocking, which translates into the text and illustrations harshly rocking from side to side as well. little touches like that are simply amazing, really immerse the reader in the story.

i know about the vietnam war and refugees, the conditions they faced trying to escape their home, but i didn't know anything that was presented after the story was over. nam le crafts a story that is so immersive and so real that it's heartbreaking and really makes you think about refugees and the effects that fleeing from a country during wartime has on those people. it's a sobering read for someone who lives a privileged life and really puts into perspective that many people face incredible hardships just to obtain a better life.

illymally's review against another edition

4.0

The first three stories are stunning, especially for a book that I picked up as a fluke based on the cover. I waited more than a year for that book to become "used" so I could have that cover in my life. There were a couple of stories in that felt like filler. I enjoyed the length of the stories, also. Much longer (30-60 pages) than a typical short story. And I actually quite like the boldness of his choice to write from many different cultural perspectives. It made his point about not being a specifically Vietnamese writer blatantly, even if you are just glancing at the index. Gorgeous book.

rhiannoncs's review against another edition

4.0

Really nice short story collection. The first story is almost autobiographical, and it's about the writer struggling to write, and everyone is telling him to write a story inspired by his ethnic heritage (he was born in Vietnam, raised in Australia, and currently lives in America) and he is resistant, but eventually gives in and tries to write the story of his father. It's the best story in the collection, and has a lot to say about contemporary literature and the way we view cultural lit, etc. And then almost all of the rest of the stories (except the last one, the eponymous story, which is about Vietnamese boat people) are stories written in the first-person or very closely written third-person, about every area of the world but Vietnam. It's all very consciously done, and done well. I really applaud trying to write stories with different settings and themes from one another, even when the POV doesn't always quite succeed, because I have read too many authors who have been writing the same story for 25 years. And in most cases, he succeeds.

nemirowski's review

2.0

Denna var oerhört hyllad när den kom och jag har haft den i läshögen länge. Några noveller biter sig fast, men jag kommer inte riktigt in i boken. För mycket metaforer och det spretar otroligt mycket.

om_nom_nomigon's review against another edition

tense slow-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? No

1.0

kaitoro_walker13's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Some very good short stories, others not, but that was to be expected. A very interesting book, and I enjoyed it thoroughly

msteasam's review against another edition

3.0

I enjoyed most of the stories in this book. Le has a talent for writing convincingly from different perspectives, and all of the stories in this book were well-written.

I particularly liked the one from the perspective of the Japanese girl

Spoiler

in Hiroshima

.
Heart breaking.

griffinwcd's review against another edition

3.0

(DNF but enjoyed some of the content)

While I really enjoyed the 3 starting chapters of the book, I can say my interest slowly declined once I got to the chapter about High School kids in Australia. I'm not one for drama involving PreK-12 and even though I did finish this chapter, it was almost a "battle" to make it through. However the Hiroshima chapter following was great!

I would still recommend this book for the variety of short stories and the content within them. 3.5/5