Reviews with content warning for Violence - Wandering Souls

This was a lyrical, poetic, and moving fictional account of three siblings as they are forced to leave home in order to survive the aftermath of the Vietnam War. It was deeply emotional and tragic, but the reader doesn't really get to know the characters. There's a lot of telling and not showing, which I get frustrated with. There are also several timeskips that can be annoying, especially since you can't sit with the characters long enough. It was a beautiful and moving story I just didn't really feel connected with the characters or felt like I truly knew them.

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lydia_reads's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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aniglen's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

A Vietnamese family are fleeing to Hong Kong but only half the family make it to the UK. This follows the journey of three siblings and their treacherous journey through refugee camps, and resettlement centres before finally arriving in Thatchers Britain where it seems they are not wanted.

The eldest of the siblings, Anh is only 15 and she quickly needs to become a role of parent to her two brothers. This is a heart breaking look at the experiences of refugees to find a better life. It deals with grief, losing one’s sense of self, belonging and family. There are magical realism chapters from the perspective of Duc, one of the siblings who didn’t make the journey protecting his family. There are also beautiful chapters looking at the traditions around grief. Most of all this book has the kindness of strangers and love at the very heart.

An incredible book which I learnt so much from. I have already started tabbing the pages that have affected me. I haven’t read literary fiction in a while and this book reminded me why I love that genre.

If you want to read a book about human connection, love against all costs without sugar coating the experience of millions of people every day, please read this.

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megangrace's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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bookishbee27's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective sad slow-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

3.0

A fascinating, multi-generational exploration of asylum seeking and immigrant life written beautifully.

The good: I was really drawn in by the historical context Wandering Souls is set in and the issues addressed as the fleeing from Vietnam following the Vietnam War and resettlement of refugees in the UK under Thatcher's government is not something I had any prior knowledge of. Pin has clearly researched this well and paints a comprehensive picture of these issues which I found highly educational. I loved how the characters were written and found their voices to be rich and interesting throughout.

The not-so-good: For me, Wandering Souls lacked much going on and I would argue it was a slow burn rather than plot driven. At times this meant I wasn't reaching for it or that compelled.

I would draw similarities with Black Butterflies in covering an important and often overlooked period of history and social issues, but needing more plot development.

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skyfluff's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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viccctk's review

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emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

An emotional and thought-provoking read. The book is about three siblings who embark on a journey out of Vietnam with the rest of their family set to follow later. I found it a very moving story as we follow their journey into the unknown.

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linhsreadinghour's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful informative 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? No

5.0

Wandering Souls is a book I’ve been searching for a very long time as a second generation immigrant whose parents made the same journey as Anh and her brothers. A short book that encapsulates trauma, resilience and sacrifice with tender love and care. I absolutely adore this book, it’s so smart in its writing structure and narratives. It will forever hold a special place in my heart. A must read for anyone who is interested in learning more about Vietnamese British diaspora.

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