Litsy

so-so

3 ⭐This book was very interesting, a little sad, and a true story. It is about a young, immigrant girl, who stopped speaking. Particularly she stop speaking English. She sees how hard her mother has it trying to learn English and get around in an English world , when she doesn‘t speak English. And her little act of rebellion of not speaking English lasted for decades. This book doesn‘t have a happy ending, and it doesn‘t tell you how to stop

LibrarianRyan this behavior. It says this is me and this is how I was feeling. The way to help other children in similar situations feel seen. to feel that they‘re not alone in their immigration status or their language barriers. 10mo

27 likes1 comment

Bookwormjillk

Curse of the Pogo Stick | Colin Cotterill

so-so

So-so with the caveat that part of my issue was with the reader, and I probably would have liked this more in print.

This book features Dr. Siri, a coroner in 1970‘s Laos. The mystery wasn‘t very engaging to me, but I loved the details of Communist Laos in 1977. If I can find a print version of another book in this series I‘ll likely give it a try.

Almost done #ReadingAsia2021

CSeydel I really enjoy this series! I definitely recommend starting with book 1 because you get more introduction to the characters and Dr Siri‘s spiritual abilities. 1y

Bookwormjillk @CSeydel thanks! Not sure how I ran across the 5th in the series, but I definitely want to find the first in print. 1y

CSeydel The mysteries are definitely secondary to the character development and the social/political/cultural exploration, but that was particularly pronounced in ‘pogo stick,‘ I felt. I‘ve only read the first 5 so far. 1y

Bookwormjillk @CSeydel That reminds me of Louise Penny's books which are some of my favorites. Thanks! 1y

57 likes4 comments

IndoorDame

Afterland: Poems | Mai Der Vang

#teak #poetrymatters @TheSpineView

TheSpineView Powerful! 1y

dabbe 🧡💜💛 1y

36 likes2 comments

Catsandbooks

From the Tops of the Trees | Kao Kalia Yang

pick

3.25/5 ⭐️ simple picture book from a child's perspective in a Thai refugee camp. I appreciated the author's note at the end about her family.
#FoodandLit Thailand

Texreader

52 likes

Robotswithpersonality

The Most Beautiful Thing | Kao Kalia Yang

pick

Reverence for elders, sadly still extraordinary for me to see in modern Western cultural narratives.
Based on author's childhood experiences as Hmong refugee (also has a memoir for adults I now want to read).
Poetic journey to self acceptance.
Cannot overstate how gorgeous the art is.

4 likes