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I found this fun, plant based clean nail polishes today. Being a Disney girl, I needed them but especially love the Belle one with the books and pink is my favorite color.

In the end, I really enjoyed SUNSHINE NAILS and appreciated it as a look at how one family experiences gentrification and anti-Asian racism as they sort out their own shit. While it builds well, though, things don‘t really pick up until the second half. Before that, there‘s not enough pathos to make it an emotional experience or enough humour to make it a comedy. It sails right down the middle of General Fiction; something to read, not to relish.

This book was fun. Just some light fare that cleanses the reading palate. It was a debut & I look forward to reading more from the author. Full disclosure, these are 100% not my nails 🤣

When Jessica‘s life in LA falls apart, she returns home to Toronto, where her parents, immigrants from Vietnam, are trying to hang on to their nail salon in the face of a new conglomerate. I really enjoyed this book and meeting this family, as they all seemed like real, flawed people. And the scene at the very end is absolutely perfect.

This is on the whole a light look at the Vietnamese immigrant experience and the world of nail salons. I did feel that the darker moments (the dad's issues for example) were given a lighter treatment than I thought they deserved. In spite of that, it was a fun and entertaining read, that I kept imagining as a sitcom. The book ended leaving room for a sequel, which I would read, as both Jessica's and Dustin's story seemed unfinished. 3.5/5 stars.

So there I was, minding my own business, planning my weekend reading for #JubilantJuly (Oscar Wars, Hijab Butch Blues) when out of absolutely NOWHERE comes Sunshine Nails busting through the wall like a Vietnamese-Canadian Kool-Aid Man. I couldn‘t put it down. Even though the writing was lackluster, the plot hooked me and I enjoyed spending time with these characters. Told from 5 POVs, the story moves fast through big changes for this family. 3⭐️

#ARC #NetGalley #PublishesTuesday This was a fun, lighthearted novel about an immigrant family living in Canada who own and operate a nail salon. When a big, luxury chain opens up across the street from the Tran Family‘s salon desperate measures are taken by all members of the family to keep the salon open. Parts of the novel were a little unrealistic but it didn‘t take away from this entertaining story about family love and chasing dreams💕

Wow, what a good read. As a child of Asian immigrants who came to the US and worked menial jobs before becoming small business openers, I felt seen.

When your current read and birthday flowers match perfectly 💜🩷🤍

If you are looking for a lighthearted David vs. Goliath read, this is not that book even though that‘s how it‘s marketed. It‘s a family drama told from 5 POVs, & while the main storyline is billed as an immigrant family trying to keep their nail salon open, it is in fact a darker story about family & expectations, gentrification, the immigrant experience, & people willing to go to extraordinary lengths to achieve their goals. On sale 7/4/23.

Up next

New ARC in—this one is a Goodreads giveaway win. It‘s a story about a Vietnamese Canadian family “who will do whatever it takes to protect their no-frills nail salon after a new high-end competitor opens up.” On sale 7/4/23.

I‘ll start this one just as soon as I finish Yellowface which continues to be excellent.

Both a drama and comedy (a dramedy?), this novel focuses on a Vietnamese-Canadian family as they battle a company hellbent on trying to shutdown their nail salon due to gentrification. Add the cultural, socio-econmics and family issues and you have fun dysfunctional family story.