A review by snailslowreader
The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-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

4.5

What a lovely and wonderful book! Nguyen writes the type of stories that I want to write—sensitive, quietly moving, and full of tender but flawed characters. The subjects are all well chosen and create a mixed picture of what it means to be an immigrant and how trauma and love, felt in personal and familial ways, can affect people years later.

Favorites (in order of their appearance): "Black-Eyed Women," "I'd Love You to Want Me," "The Americans"

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse, Grief, and War