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By: WAIUK 001
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2026-03-01 12:32:08 |
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Group really enjoyed the book. A sensitive tale of people caught up in the Vietnam War, and the tragic aftermath of families involved - both during the war, and years later. |
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By: COOKS 001
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2026-01-20 14:22:56 |
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Half loved it and thought it portrayed the plight of 'war orphans', 'bar girls' and returning GIs to Vietnam with sympathy and compassion. The other half couldn't engage with the topic and found the writing to be of average quality. This was our 3rd consecutive story with the theme of orphans and child abuse which made it hard to 'push through' for some of us. Our discussion centered on todays 'war orphans' mainly in Ukraine and Palestine. What would their future be like? |
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By: WELL 045
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2025-11-17 11:20:53 |
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Everyone was captivated by this book from the start. |
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By: AUCK 189
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2025-11-17 11:05:45 |
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Enjoyed by all. Well-written. Ending a little too neat and implausible, but forgiven because it was a good read. We learned new things about that war. |
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By: MANGWK 001
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2025-11-03 11:54:06 |
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A stark reminder of the consequences in many forms of conflict. Robust discussion including our own memories of the Vietnam War beamed into our living rooms in the 1960s-1970s. |
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By: AUCK 443
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2025-10-06 10:32:36 |
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A very compelling novel - insightful and well researched, beautifully written, deeply emotional and heartbreaking. We gave it a 4, but on re-reading some chapters, I'd give it a 5. Perhaps the book notes could have posed deeper questions. |
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By: HAMIL 029
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2025-09-23 11:49:36 |
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We all enjoyed this novel although it deals with the trauma of the war in Vietnam. The view of the war was most interesting to us, especially as the novel shows the experiences of Vietnamese people primarily. The novel shifts time and viewpoint often, and the final section has a little surprise in the development of the plot. Phan Que Mai has a gift for characterisation. A book well worth reading. |
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By: AUCK 461
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2025-08-19 14:05:13 |
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Our group thought this was a well-researched book, covering an aspect of the Vietnam War that most of us had not considered. "A book to make you think." Some members found the ending to be rushed and thought that the story contained too many coincidences, but was overall worthwhile. |
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By: TAUR 049
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2025-06-23 14:43:53 |
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Excellent read. One of the very few books on any war that presents multiple perspectives. Characters felt real. |
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By: HAMIL 074
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2025-06-23 11:40:14 |
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This book really opened our eyes to the wider and ongoing effects of war, and the communities and lives that are affected. A great story. |
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By: MATAM 006
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2025-06-16 11:57:32 |
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Half our group liked this book and half didn't. Some thought it was too slow to begin with. The ones that liked this loved learning about the effects the war had on the American soldiers and the Vietnamese women, plus the children that came from their union. It was a new topic for us. |
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By: ROTO 010
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2025-06-09 22:41:28 |
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This was a book we all enjoyed, to be able to understand the long-lasting effects of war and how the unjust and the just try and balance out. Human civilisation is made of loving individuals against such harsh realities for survival. The end of the book did seem a bit staged by the author some of our group thought. There were strands of the story to tie together and we were unsure if Nguyen Phan's approach rang true with the novel's pace. |
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By: PIOPIO 001
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2025-05-22 18:55:42 |
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A very well-written informative book that covers so many intergenerational consequences of the war in Vietnam. Memorable and believable characters who all brought this story to life. We all enjoyed the book although it's confronting on many levels even though many of our group were familiar with the Vietnam story. |
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By: GISB 003
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2025-05-07 11:28:33 |
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Great read to start the year. |
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By: TAUR 023
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2025-05-05 09:34:53 |
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Appreciated by most of the group. Some didn't finish it - found the story too confronting. |
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By: AUCK 037
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2025-03-04 12:05:05 |
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Our group had all read this book very easily and one had found it very emotional and another not at all. The story of what happened to the Ameriasian babies from the Vietnam war was well done and many thought the returning vet and father to a child he had not followed up was very powerful. We described the book as a page turner. The reason that Dan hadn’t found out about his baby until the trip many years later was attributed to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. There was much to discuss and a good book to begin our year with. |
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By: KATIK 002
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2025-02-26 12:01:41 |
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Really opened our eyes to the dilemma the women had during this time. So so sad - a multitude of problems. Magnificent read. Opens your eyes to the horrors of what happened in Vietnam - Agent Orange etc. The simplicity of the girls, trying to do the right thing, and the trauma as their eyes were opened. |
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By: NELS 065
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2024-09-23 14:50:52 |
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Absolutely brilliant, we all enjoyed it. A subject none of us knew about. |
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