Dust Child - Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai (Blog Tour & Review)

Date of Reading: 2/5/2023

Author: Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

Publisher: One World

Publication Date: April 20, 2023

Rating: 5/5

About the book:

During the Việt Nam War, tens of thousands of children were born into relationships between American soldiers and Việtnamese women. Tragic circumstances separated most of these Amerasian children from their parents.

Many have not found each other again…

In 1969, two sisters from rural Việt Nam leave their parents' home to find work in Sài Gòn. Caught up in the war that is blazing through their country they, like many other young Việtnamese women, are employed as hostesses in a bar frequented by American GIs. Soon they are forced to accept that their own survival, and that of their family back home, might mean compromising the values they have always held dear. As the fighting moves closer to the city, the elder sister, Trang, begins a romance with a young American helicopter pilot.

Decades later, two men wander the streets and marketplaces of modern Sài Gòn. Phong is a ‘Dust Child’ – the son of a Black American soldier and a Vietnamese woman, abandoned by his mother and ostracized all his life – and is looking for his parents and through them a way out of Việt Nam. Meanwhile war veteran Dan returns with his wife Linda, hoping to ease the PTSD that has plagued him for decades. Neither of them can escape the shadow of decisions made during a time of desperation.

With the same compassion and insight that has made The Mountains Sing a favourite of readers across the world, Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai brings to life the interwoven stories of these four unforgettable characters and asks what it takes to move forward.

Review:

        After reading 'The Mountains Sing', picking this book was a no-brainer. Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai is a masterful writer when it comes to recapturing the images of a war-torn Vietnam and its people. Based on the interviews she conducted as part of her PhD, 'Dust Child' surpasses expectations, evoking both pain and hope in equal measure.

        Narrated in multiple POV, the story follows three lives. One is in the past during the war. Two sisters, Trang and Quynh, leave for Sai Gon anticipating a brighter future for their family and ends up working as bar girls. Back in 2016, Dan, a war veteran returns with his wife Linda to confront his past. Meanwhile, Phong, the son of a Black American soldier and a Vietnamese woman, struggles to escape the discrimination he faces in Vietnam and make it to America. All the stories are connected . . . not in the way you imagine it to be.

        As the narrative moves back and forth from 1969 to 2016, we come face to face with the realities of war. Trang, Quynh and Dan commit mistakes but it is hard to judge them when we see the devastating impact of war on their lives. We all lose something in a war. 'Dust Child' is a reminder as well as a desire that no country should be subjected to such a disaster. It's a book that will stay with you long after you've turned the final page.

Meet the author:

NGUYỄN PHAN QUẾ MAI is an award-winning Vietnamese poet and novelist. Born in the Red Delta of Northern Việt Nam, she grew up in the Mekong Delta, Southern Việt Nam. She is awriter  and translator who has published eight books of poetry, short stories and non-fiction in Vietnamese. Her debut novel and first book in English, The Mountains Sing, is an international bestseller, runner-up for the 2021 Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and winner of the 2021 PEN Oakland/ Josephine Miles Literary Award, the 2020 Lannan Literary Award Fellowship, and others, and has been translated into fifteen languages. She has a PhD in Creative Writing from Lancaster University, and her writing has appeared in various publications including the New York Times.

Quế Mai was named by Forbes Vietnam as one of the twenty most inspiring women of 2021. Dust Child is inspired by her many years working as a volunteer helping family members unite, and reflects the real-life experiences of Amerasians and

their family members.