A review by kappafrog
Banyan Moon by Thao Thai

dark emotional informative reflective sad tense 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? Yes

4.25

This book felt like an instant classic. I was totally drawn into the story and read it in two days. It was my first time in a long time reading a family saga like this, and I really enjoyed it.

The writing style is really beautiful. I highlighted so many different passages. Here are a few favourite quotes:

"We would never have to lean on our stories to save us. We'd never need saving at all. Our roots would lift from the earth and carry us someplace where the dread would not pull us down."

"I see Banyan House for what it is: a home for women, a shaggy, worn, and vicious protector of the bruised, the tender."

"How love, for all its treachery, finds me in the last, unexpected moments of light."

"And I didn't tell him that none of it had been wasted at all, because I knew he would not see it that way."


Each of the three main characters was so complicated. Ann was the least sympathetic, as she had a coldness towards her mother that was hard to read at times, but her character growth was really great. My favourite of the three was Huong.
I wish we had gotten her voice once again at the end, after the Banyan House burned down. I could tell that a weight had been lifted off her after it was gone, the room where Vinh died finally destroyed like she'd wanted it to be for all those years. I suspect she knew that Phuoc was the one who burned the house down, from some of the hints we got in the dialogue. Whether she confronted him about it and that was why he moved away, I'm not sure. I was really glad that Ann came to appreciate her mother more by the end.


Minh's passages were always so interesting, looking back on her long life. With each of these women, you understood why they did the things they did. I wish I had a more eloquent way of describing how rich the relationships in this book are. You can really feel the weight of the atmosphere of the places described in the book too. The heat and humidity of the Florida summer hangs down over everyone like bugs dancing on the water of a swamp. The Banyan House had such personality, and I loved the way that the folk tale about the moon was woven through.

I was glad that Ann and Wes didn't end up together. Their scenes were often really nice, but Crystal talking about how unhappy Fiona had been made me very wary of him at the end. I was a little disappointed that some of the secrets the Tran women kept weren't communicated to each other, after the ominous passages about how the Banyan House couldn't handle the weight of all the secrets, and neither could they. I also had very mixed feelings about Ann naming her son Bính. It felt like a root to the past that wasn't needed, especially since we knew what a cad the original Bính was, though she of course didn't. It was an odd note for me and I'm not sure how it'll sit with me over time. There was also one mystery that was never addressed, the cryptic references Minh made to "the Lady" who had once owned the house.


I highly recommend this book for anyone who likes family sagas. This one feels like it will be talked about for a long time to come, read in classes and book clubs with discussions of all the symbolism, layers of truth, and revelations that come as the story goes on. It was hard to read at times and is very sad, but the three women were so interesting to read about.
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