Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Short Girls by Bich Minh Nguyen

Disclaimer: I get all my books from the library.

Today's book is Short Girls by Bich Minh Nguyen.


This book was kind of an anomaly for me. As I read it, I could tell that it was a work of literary art. It bridges chasms of cultural depth between the American and Vietnamese culture. It has a huge moral undertone. It has a plot.

And yet, it didn't really hold my attention. There was a lot of description. Flashbacks interspersed with the current day. And I just wanted to know what was happening. This book is well written, and I skipped ahead quite a bit because I wasn't putting it down until I knew the whole story. But it couldn't keep me.

Written about two sisters who aren't very close to each other, they find themselves pulling together when one sister realizes her husband is cheating on her. While she comes to terms with this unfortunate circumstance, her other sister recognizes herself as the homewrecker, since she is having an affair with a married man. She breaks it off (and there I think the book makes a huge social commentary) and the two sisters learn to live independently, not identifying themselves by their men (another social commentary).

You might love this book. It has some good things to it. It could end up being a classic.

I will give it a good solid C.

A = Buy this book NOW
B = Buy this when you can
C = Check it out from the library
D = Don't bother reading it
F = Burn it

2 comments:

  1. Being an avid reader your site intrigues me. I love a good, honest review. Being a writer, your site terrifies me. Here's to hoping you love my future book. :) Now, I will search the posts you have made so far for my next read. Thanks.

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  2. Hi Kasie,

    As you can see, I'm new to the blogging scene. I'm hard to please, but I'm always looking for the next great read. Aren't we all? Don't we just want to fall in love with a book? I'm constantly disappointed. But maybe your books will be the next great thing for me!

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