Welcome to Litsy!

Wrapped up January by finishing The Mountains Sings. Recommend it and also love using The StoryGraph for tracking

Set in Vietnam we have one family, two timelines. One during the land reforms in the thirties and the other set in the seventies during the Viet Nam war.

I learnt a lot reading this book. About the history, the culture and family dynamics.

With both tinelines handling heavy topics and featuring the same characters I did feel confused at times, I think a linear timeline would have worked better for me personally. That aside I did enjoy this.

What I loved: the history
What I liked: the story
What I hated: the writing which was choppy, written mostly in mono and disyllabic words and was totally lacking in style. I don‘t know why this bothered me so much because most people don‘t seem to have minded it. 🤷‍♀️

9th book of 2024!

One of my best #bookspin months in a long while.
I finished both my #bookspin and my #doublespin
And worked in 3 #bookspinbingos

Thanks @thearomaofbooks for helping me focus and get those old TBR books read!

#bookspin @TheAromaofBooks
This is a very heavy book - set before and during the war with the United States, we follow a family who has been scattered and the generations before this time, when the French and Japanese invaded. It is a brutal and traumatic look at how innocent families were affected by the wars.
I did find it a bit hard to follow especially in the middle as the POV was changing but I think it is an important read.

#Bookspin The Mountains Sing
#DoubleSpin Punching the Air

@thearomaofbooks

I am super excited, my goal for this year with the help of Bookspin was to get all of my 2019 books off my GR TBR, at this rate, it looks like I will be getting not only the 2019 ones but 14 #DoubleSpin is my last book on there for 2020! So I think I will be up to 2021 at the beginning of next year, anything left of these 14 at the end of the year I am going to delete.

A heart breaking book that brings to life Vietnams tumultuous past through the experiences of one family. We meet Huong and her grandmother recovering from a bomb strike in 1972 and hoping for the return of parents who have been caught up in the war. We also get Grandma‘s childhood and life through the Land Reform and WW2. This family has been through a lot of trauma and it was a valuable education to have my eyes opened to it ⬇️

Such a moving novel: shifting back and forth in North Vietnam between an early teenage girl‘s experience of the end of the Vietnam war and her grandmother‘s survival of the 1945 Great Hunger and later Communist land reform, with the middle generation being the struggling children in the early phase, or those who went to war later. A country I know almost nothing about: so many good insights. #Booked2023 #SetInAMountainRegion
#Bookspin

Heart breaking at times it‘s a beautifully written book that centres on three generations of women including their relationships. I loved the Vietnamese proverbs.

A great cast of characters. I found myself deeply moved multiple times throughout the book. Would reccomend!

What a beautiful book. A family saga during different period of times in Vietnam. The story is told fromGuava (Huong) and her grandmother perspectives. How the wars affected these two generations. So many sad scenes during those battles😢so important to know their own voices since the author said was part of that aftermath. I loved to know about their culture and folklore. The audio was perfect to have a sense of how the language sounds. 4.5/5⭐️

Another excellent and thoughtful choice from my #NewYearWhoDis buddy @4thhouseontheleft

It‘s the story of three generations of a Vietnamese family and leading up to, during, and after, what Americans refer to as the Vietnam War. As you might imagine, there is plenty of tragedy, but there are also bright spots of love that keep it from being a total drag.

If you aren‘t familiar with Vietnamese pronunciation, I highly recommend the audio version.

@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
@Eggs
#Beginswith Sing

Day 23

This is a wonderful family saga story from a Vietnamese author. I learned quite a few new things about the history of Vietnam and the culture through this story. It was heartwrenchingly beautiful. ❤️ #bookclubpick

A really nice insight into the Vietnam war from the Vietnamese perspective. Loved the Vietnamese pronunciation of the phrases and songs. It was very authentic. Describes generational trauma and the power of forgiveness.

Through this work of fiction a brief history of Vietnam from the land reform years through the war told through the eyes of one family as they struggle to survive.

Like and enjoy this book more than I expected.
Like the tenderness and warmth this book conveys even what it talks about is a cruel and sad history. Also, this book brought the memory of Hà Nội I visited to and my plan to travel to Vietnam again back to me. Most importantly, I learned that what Vietnamese have been through is more than the Vietnam War.
“May our planet never see another armed conflict” said the author resonates with me. Recommend!

An epic family saga spanning the Vietnamese land reform and Vietnam-America war, the focus is Huong‘s grandmother telling her life story as Huong comes of age in the aftermath of the war. I think this is the first book I‘ve read which focuses on the Vietnamese people; all I knew of the war was based on an American perspective. An affecting study of everyday life and family relationships, as well as hardships faced. Gripping and beautifully written

Book 109

The Mountains Sing is the well-written story of the Tran family, displaced from their home and separated during the Viet Nam War, as they reunite. It's an educational, heartfelt Vietnamese perspective rich with quality characters. I will read more by the author. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This bok is set in 2 time lines, one during the Vietnam war in 1970s and the other is during the war with Japan and France in 1950s.
It was just so good to read and learn about loss and tragedy which did not revolve around the World War.

Sunday Funday!!!
Spent the Sunday updating the reading challenge 🎊🎉🎊🎉

This came in a book box this month!!!

I adored this novel. I was immersed in the multigenerational story of a woman and her granddaughter‘s experience in Vietnam. It was a beautiful and heartbreaking story of love and family. This also made me understand the extraordinarily difficult times in Vietnam during the 20th century.

All the emotions. It‘s a story of one family through decades and traumatic lives. Viet Nam in the 20th century was all upheaval and unrest. But this family, especially the grandmother just didn‘t quit. After reading some #readingasia2021 picks focused on colonialists, this was a welcome change for its in-depth look from a Vietnamese author about her country and its people.

Full review http://www.TheBibliophage.com #thebibliophage2021 #vietnam

Started this yesterday while I was #audioweeding in my garden. Makes my least favorite part of gardening more palatable, even though it‘s a #vietnam war story. Working my way slowly through #readingasia.

My birthday gift finally arrived, 6 months late😂😂😂
It has 3 books, a Sherlock Holmes based book end, a bookaholic mask, personalized library card, some reading trackers, a few bookmarks and couple of other things.
The best part- this is the first of three boxes to arrive!!!

It seems almost sacrilegious to say this is a beautifully written book while the content is about two violent periods of Vietnam‘s history. Even though surrounded by violence, respectfulness and gentleness could still be found among the people of Vietnam. This is a story of human endurance, family, loyalty, hope, and the strength of the women.

“If our stories survive, we will not die, even when our bodies are no longer here on earth.”

1. Occasionally I will. I did this with the tagged book because there were many Vietnamese phrases and names and I wanted to hear how they were pronounced.
2. I love hearing words in other languages besides English and sometimes it helps me keep characters straight when I hear their names versus read them.
#Two4Tuesday

My next read... Anyone read ?

#AudioWalking This read is excellent so far.

Such a beautiful story. And I agree with her dedication, “May our planet never see another armed conflict.”

????? This heartbreaking look at one family's struggles and sacrifices covers time from 1930's into 1980. Dieu Lan tells stories of her past to her granddaughter, nicknamed Guava, interspersed with their "present day" experiences. It is an amazing story of strength and sadness, with a few rare moments of good and happiness. Listening on audio really helped me to hear the pronunciations and immerse myself in Vietnam. If you listen...

This was a tough read, but so beautiful and definitely worth the effort!

This is the story of Trần Diệu Lan and her granddaughter Hương (nicknamed Guava). Set in two timelines it tells the tale of Diệu Lan‘s life, and how she fled her home with six children during the land reforms, and of her and Hương‘s life during the Vietnam war years later.

#FoodAndLit #Vietnam

Couldn't stop reading this once I started. 339 pages, went by in a flash. Multigenerational saga of Vietnam, 1940s-1970s.

#20in4, @Andrew65, #foodandlit

The Mountains Sing is a harrowing story of intergenerational trauma that spans the Land Reforms of the 1950s through the post-Vietnam War era. At its core is Dieu Lan, the grandmother, an incredibly resilient woman who perseveres through horrific tragedies. Dieu Lan‘s flashbacks alternate from the coming of age story of her granddaughter, Guava. Reconciliation, forgiveness, and familial bonds are recurring themes. Definitely a 5⭐️ read.

I made beef pho from scratch for #FoodAndLit today!
I followed the recipe but was a little disappointed by the broth. After 5 hours I had hoped for something with more depth, and although it smelled amazing, the finished broth was quite weak. I will adapt if I make it again! The herbs, garnish, and beef worked really well with it, though I may have made it a little spicy! 🤣

#Vietnam

This quote struck me, since I‘m reading this book as part of the #foodandlit challenge to explore other countries and cultures!

When I visited Vietnam in the early 2000s, it was the first time I learned about the Vietnam War from the Vietnamese perspective. That experience has always stuck with me, and was the beginning of my journey to seek out multiple perspectives when learning about historical and current events.

5🌟In The Mountains Sing we follow matriarch, Dieu Lan through the years, war, starvation, the losses, heartbreaks, and unbelievably hard decisions to do whats best for her and her family to survive. Her story is not for the weak of heart, she will blow you away with her resilience, strength and compassion. How one woman and one family can continually suffer and continually rise again was so captivating to read! Highly reccomend!

Finally chose the book I'm going to read for #FoodAndLit #Vietnam @Butterfinger @Texreader

A very dark book. Of the almost 11 hours of audio, maybe a total of 1 hour over the course of the book was either happy or neutral emotionally. The rest involved sadness and tragedy—a difficult book, but knowing this was likely an accurate depiction of what #Vietnam went through during French occupation and the war, it seemed the least I could do was listen, understand, & appreciate the experiences. Very well written & narrated. #foodandlit

Audiocrafting now to the tagged book. These cards are perfect to wish all my Litten friends Happy Valentines Day! I‘m so grateful for your friendship.

This novel was epic and sweeping in terms of the timeframe and geography it covered, while still being utterly readable and engrossing. Following a grandmother and granddaughter through 2 timeframes of Vietnamese history, you are transported to times & places through food, books, songs, & nature. The story is heartbreaking, yet full of richly rewarding stories of complicated family relationships. Probably one of my best-of-2021-reads.
#foodandlit

A cold day perfect to read this amazing story about what decades of war do to a North Vietnamese family. With a Spotify playlist of Vietnamese music, Googling images of places like this one of Turtle Tower. The book is heartbreaking & engrossing. There‘s an interesting Little House in the Big Woods connection, where she learns from reading a smuggled handwritten copy that Americans are more similar to her than she‘s been told. #foodandlit

Beautifully written and heartbreaking. First book I‘ve read that takes the perspective of the North Vietnamese throughout decades of war and pain. I was immediately drawn into the lives of this family that suffered so much but still fought for the ones they loved. #8of2021

I started this one this weekend for #foodandlit #Vietnam and #readingasia2021. I‘m two hours into it and I like it a lot. @Butterfinger @Catsandbooks @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB

This one is on sale right now through Amazon (e-book only) in the States and Kobo in Canada. It sounds like a great read, perfect for #FoodandLit #Vietnam next month!

@Butterfinger @Texreader

2 graphic memoirs
Vietnamese Memories Vol.1: Leaving Saigon (1)by Clément Baloup (focuses on people going to France)
- Such a lovely little war by Marcelino Truong (from a Vietnamese child's perspective, but an adult book.)

The sorrow of war by Bao Minh (novel written by North Vietnamese soldier)

Vietnam: anatural history/Eleanor Sterling
Vietnam: anew history/Christopher Goscha

The mountains sing by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

#foodandlit, #Vietnam

Here are my top 9 favorites of 2020. (Not necessarily published in 2020, just books I read last year.) I read 92 books in 2020 and gave 35 books a 5 ⭐️ rating. It was an awesome reading year for me.