Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Algonquin Books
Pages: 352
Published: March 14th, 2023
Buy at: Barnes & Noble | IndieBound | Workman | Amazon | Add to Goodreads
Review:
If, like me, you have grown up in the 80s, you would have probably watched a fair share of Hollywood action movies and shows featuring Vietnam veterans (Born on the Fourth of July and Platoon just to name a few). Some even romanticized relationships between the American GIs (Government Issue i.e. soldiers) and the local Vietnamese women. What we were never aware of were the overlooked yet innocent casualties. The mixed-race Amerasian children born out of these relationships (sometimes prostitution and rape as well) and their lifelong struggle for acceptance. Mostly orphans and branded bụi đời (“life of dust” or “dusty life”). The Dust Child.
He wandered to Sài Gòn and became a bụi đời, the dust of life. He hated the term, for it referred to all homeless people as if to erase them of their own identities.
When I was invited to promote Dust Child by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, I signed up immediately. I read the author’s debut book, The Mountains Sing back in 2020. One of the first to showcase Vietnam from the Vietnamese perspective. Her highly-anticipated sophomore novel captures the heartache and trauma during and after the war.
The book is not just about the bụi đời. It is a nuanced narrative of people affected by the war and its aftermath. The Amerasian children, the soldiers on all sides, the villagers, the city dwellers, and people who had nothing to do with the politics of war. Narrated across multiple timelines (between 1969 and 2016), it switches between the past and present with equal ease. The fast-paced read explores the dark side of a war that spared none. Quế Mai is a master storyteller. Her writing is heartbreakingly beautiful and has you turning the pages. Her book does not romanticize the trauma. It lays the ravages of war all bare but also speaks of hope, forgiveness, and second chances.
“She had tried to live an honest life, but the war had given her no choice.”
It is the story of two sisters Trang and Quỳnh from a rural Vietnam village who become “bar girls” for American GI patrons in Saigon. To support their family back home. Trang finds love in the arms of a GI only to be abandoned when she needs him the most.
Phong, an Amerasian child of an African American soldier and a Vietnamese woman. Abandoned at birth and bullied for his skin color. Now middle-aged, he dreams of a better life for his family but has enough vultures around to make a quick buck on this suffering.
Dan, a troubled US veteran and helicopter pilot struggling with PTSD. He returns to Vietnam with his wife, Linda, almost fifty years later looking for closure and is haunted by a secret that could upturn his life.
As their worlds collide decades later, there is heartbreak, forgiveness, and acceptance. New bonds formed. And there is hope for a better, more peaceful world.
Not just the central characters, the author also explores the effect of war on each side involved. The tour guide, an allied ARVN veteran abandoned by America and left to suffer the consequences. A communist soldier suffering from Alzeihmer but still tormented by the ghosts of the war. No character is black or white but brainwashed soldiers by the propaganda machine.
“The war doesn’t just kill people, it robs our livelihood and destroys nature”
Seven years in the making, the novel is a result of the author’s Ph.D. research. Although the characters are fictitious, their stories are inspired by real-life interviews, journalistic experiences, and voluntary work with those impacted by the war. There are numerous Phongs and Trangs out there. That gives you goosebumps. Real-life events such as Operation Babylift and the Amerasian Homecoming Act are well woven into the narrative.
I cannot recommend the book enough. An all five stars read for me. It is more relevant now than ever before. When trigger-happy leaders go to war and the common folk are left to pick up the pieces for decades to come. War and strife spare no one.
Trigger warnings: War, PTSD, prostitution, rape, racism, bullying
About Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai
Born and raised in Việt Nam, Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai is the author of The Mountains Sing, runner-up for the 2021 Dayton Literary Peace Prize, winner of the 2020 BookBrowse Best Debut Award, the 2021 International Book Awards, the 2021 PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award, and the 2020 Lannan Literary Award Fellowship for Fiction. She has published twelve books of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction and has received some of the top literary prizes in Việt Nam. Her writing has been translated into twenty languages and has appeared in major publications, including the New York Times. She has a PhD in creative writing from Lancaster University. She is an advocate for the rights of disadvantaged groups in Việt Nam and has founded several scholarship programs, and she was named by Forbes Vietnam as one of twenty inspiring women of 2021. For more information, visit: nguyenphanquemai.com.
Follow her on Twitter: @nguyen_p_quemai and Instagram: nguyenphanquemai_
I would like to thank Algonquin Books for providing a digital copy of the book for the blog tour. All opinions are my own.
This blog post is part of the blog challenge ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’ hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla in collaboration with Mads’ Cookhouse.
March 24, 2023 @ 3:45 pm
This book is going to be a very new addition to my self. i really love to dive in books related to wars and lives if people around it. As you mentioned in your review, how people are affected by the war made me know its my genre of reading.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:31 pm
That is great, Anasua. Looking forward to reading your thoughts on it. 😊
March 24, 2023 @ 10:25 pm
Even before I started reading your review, I saw the picture of the book cover and thought that the scrip lt is Vietnamese! And voila I was right! The war era was so brutal and disheartening. I would love to read this book.
March 26, 2023 @ 3:52 pm
Like history, I have an inclination for anything based on war. When I was in my late 20s I used to read on and research the lives of POWs.
I m sure this book is a masterpiece Ritu. You have set the stage with your review and I am looking forward to read it. I haven’t read The Mountains sing but I’ve heard rave reviews about that one as well.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:33 pm
Do read it too, Kaveri. Although I a bit partial to Dust Child.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:32 pm
Yes, that is a dead giveaway. The war served no purpose.
March 25, 2023 @ 6:34 pm
Your reviews are always amazing and so are the books you list. Such different genres always. Dust Child seems very very interesting read. I am adding this to my TBR list and I am sure I will love it.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:34 pm
Thank you such Shail 😊. You are too kind.
March 25, 2023 @ 11:04 pm
War…. the word is something which always ticks negative in my mind and so you can say that I prefer to avoid picking books of this genre. But that does not mean I dont read this genre at all… yes I am choosy . Being the child of a history teacher I witnessed my mom preparing her lessons before every class to help the student understand better and there were a learned a lot about various wars, their effects and results on the whole and in some cases on particular nations… from her I got a overview of the life of the Vietnam people before and after the war and from your review I can relate it more… so now the book is a must read for me and thanks for the recommendation
March 28, 2023 @ 4:35 pm
Very true, Samata. It is not an easy one to read. Books on wars never are.
March 25, 2023 @ 11:12 pm
Very well-written review of a war book. But as you gave a warning, I am not comfortable reading such books. There is so much sorrow in real life that I steer clear of such books and movies. Romance and comedy are the genres I read now.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:36 pm
That is completely understandable, Harjeet. I too am looking to pick a few romance picks now.
March 25, 2023 @ 11:55 pm
As I started reading your review, it struck me that I had never read anything detailed on Vietnam. I have seen Platoon and know about the war. And this book took 7 years, am sure your stars are for the right novel. Going to check this out now.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:37 pm
Do pick it up, Ambica. I highly recommend The Mountains Sing from the author too. It is more about the history of Vietnam we never read about.
March 26, 2023 @ 12:20 am
This is such an important read, especially now when there’s war all around us and casualties keep piling up every day. People who suffer for no fault of theirs are conveniently forgotten. Not sure if I have the heart to read this, Ritu. Beautiful as it might be, it’ll bomb me out for sure.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:39 pm
Completely understandable, Varsha. That is why I included trigger warnings. Hope you do pick it up one day, though.
March 26, 2023 @ 9:02 am
The book title actually caught my attention, definitely the time taken and the moments added may have done wonders in this book. Worth a read
March 28, 2023 @ 4:39 pm
Definitely Flavia. It is a labor of love.
March 26, 2023 @ 11:25 am
War, prostitution, trigger points are tricky. I don’t like to read emotional things because I too get involved in such things. I have experience what is war and the effects of war in real life. So try to avoid such topics. But your review is too good as always. And it is always helpful to the reader whether they should picked it or not.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:41 pm
Absolutely Neeta. We all have our trigger books and genres. We should read what we do want to read.
March 26, 2023 @ 4:17 pm
This is a very informative book review. While it isn’t the genre I typically veer towards, the way you made it sound makes me think I may give it a chance!
March 28, 2023 @ 4:42 pm
Thank you Meetali. 😊 Do pick it up.
March 26, 2023 @ 4:21 pm
Hardships, war, love betrayal the bool seems to be an interesting and emotional read. War sequences always make me emotional. I loved the title and book cover.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:42 pm
It is emotionally draining. But an important book nonetheless.
March 26, 2023 @ 4:25 pm
War, hardship, supporting family I think the book is interesting and emotional read. War sequences make me emotional but I liked the title and the book cover.
March 26, 2023 @ 5:16 pm
The perils surely last longer than the actual war ends. Your review of the book makes the book a must-read for me. I am a History lover, so I’m sure the book will resonate with me.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:43 pm
Thank you Zenobia 😊. Looking forward to reading your thoughts.
March 26, 2023 @ 6:39 pm
Ritu, I love your recommendations. You pick interesting and wonderful books. I have not heard of this community among Vietnamese before and reading a review about them fills me with curiosity to know more. Thanks for this review.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:44 pm
Thank you so much Janaki. 😊 I always try to share lesser known books that deserve more love.
March 26, 2023 @ 7:03 pm
This book review is very interesting and well-written. I totally agree with this, “The war doesn’t just kill people, it robs our livelihood and destroys nature” and wouldn’t wish anyone to be in any situation near war. It’s just something that we as humans shouldn’t explore and simply live with peace and harmony. And I’m totally aware, for those reading….” if only it was that simple.” =(
March 28, 2023 @ 4:46 pm
Thank you so much, Jeannine 😊. So very true. Yet everyday we hear of wars and strife. We never learn from history.
March 26, 2023 @ 7:19 pm
Ritu you amaze me with you wide range and depth of reading. You have written a beautiful review, given pertinent details and explaining your reasons. Books like these are important to bring awareness towards the horrors of war and not make it seem like a game. The chaos of war leaves so much heart ache and for generations.. I wish the best to the author for writing with her heart.
I look forward to reading more great reviews by you.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:49 pm
Thank you so much for your kind words, Sakshi 😊. The author deserves accolades and more for sharing the Vietnamese side we never got to know. Her debut book was equally heartbreaking.
March 27, 2023 @ 1:12 am
I am going to add this book in my booklist. I loved the plot and the theme of this book. You have written an amazing review for sure. I am going to read it soon.
March 28, 2023 @ 4:49 pm
Thank you so much Pamela 😊. Do pick it up.
April 5, 2023 @ 9:14 am
Not just a hard-hitting book but a fabulous review of it, too Ritu. I have fallen in love with the book thanks to your reviewing process and will definitely be picking it up.
I have the Mountains Sing on my TBR and am ordering this one from Amazon too. I love historical fiction, and each has shown me a unique perspective of the wars that have been glorified in the history books but for all the wrong reasons. So much lies hidden/ignored under these stories. Thank you for sharing this review.
Love your blog feel and look and will explore more of it to add to my TBR.
April 5, 2023 @ 6:25 pm
Thank you so much, Shalz 😊. Means a lot coming from you. You have been my go-to for book recommendations.
Que Mai’s books are such eye openers. We rarely if ever got to read the Vietnamese perspective.
April 29, 2023 @ 11:10 am
Seems like a fascinating read. Another one I would recommend on a similar subject is Ocean Vuong’s ‘On Earth, We’re Briefly Gorgeous’.