Thank you Hachette Audio for the ALC and Algonquin Books, #partner for the finished copy of Dust Child in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Algonquin Books / Hachette Audio
Published: March 14, 2023
Summary:
From the internationally bestselling author of The Mountains Sing, a suspenseful and moving saga about family secrets, hidden trauma, and the overriding power of forgiveness, set during the war and in present-day Việt Nam.
In 1969, sisters Trang and Quỳnh, desperate to help their parents pay off debts, leave their rural village and become “bar girls” in Sài Gòn, drinking, flirting (and more) with American GIs in return for money. As the war moves closer to the city, the once-innocent Trang gets swept up in an irresistible romance with a young and charming American helicopter pilot. Decades later, an American veteran, Dan, returns to Việt Nam with his wife, Linda, hoping to find a way to heal from his PTSD and, unbeknownst to her, reckon with secrets from his past.
At the same time, Phong—the son of a Black American soldier and a Vietnamese woman—embarks on a search to find both his parents and a way out of Việt Nam. Abandoned in front of an orphanage, Phong grew up being called “the dust of life,” “Black American imperialist,” and “child of the enemy,” and he dreams of a better life for himself and his family in the U.S.
Past and present converge as these characters come together to confront decisions made during a time of war—decisions that force them to look deep within and find common ground across race, generation, culture, and language. Suspenseful, poetic, and perfect for fans of Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko or Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing, Dust Child tells an unforgettable and immersive story of how those who inherited tragedy can redefine their destinies through love, hard-earned wisdom, compassion, courage, and joy.
My thoughts:
This is the first book I’ve read by Nguyen Phan Que Mai but it certainly will not be the last. I was thrilled when I saw that it was selected as March’s #MysteryBookClub selection and that I was picked to participate – that gave me the opportunity to not only get a print copy of this beautiful book but also be involved in a book chat with the other members of the book club! The fun part about this bookclub is that when you throw your hat in to participate each month, you don’t know what the book choice is at first, hence the name, #MysteryBookClub! They have had some really great selections and I’m glad I was able to join for this one!
This book is both powerful and heartbreaking. I haven’t read many books set in Vietnam nor during the Vietnam War, so this was such an eye-opening book on both accounts. I found myself immediately captivated by the storytelling and the characters that we meet and once I started this one, I really had such a hard time putting it down. Moving back and forth between the different timelines, it is quite easy to see just how far reaching the impacts this war had on all those involved – the soldiers, those that lived in the area, and those children who through no fault of their own came to be because of interactions during this time. It is these Ameriasians that really bear the brunt of this trauma the most at times, and we see that through this story.
I read this one back in March and have been struggling with how to put into words my love of this book. And I know I will never adequately be able to do it justice the way I want, but I highly recommend picking this one up. I alternated between the print and audio and if you listen to audiobooks, I highly recommend doing so…it really is so well done, but even if you don’t, just reading this one is a must. The way this author has of telling a story is just so powerful and poetic…this is why it is still with me after all this time, and why I don’t think I will ever stop thinking about it.
Audio thoughts:
As I mentioned, I alternated between the audio and print with this one and I thought the audio was fantastic. It is narrated by Quyen Ngo and she does such an amazing job bringing this story to life. Her pacing and intonation was spot on and I truly was captivated by her narration. I loved having the print on hand so that I could refer back when I wanted to or so that I could keep reading if I was in a place where I couldn’t listen because this was a book that I just could not stop reading once I started.
