On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous - Ocean Vuong

⭐ 8.0/10

(Originally written by Magdalene)

This one is hard for me to review. The author is a poet, and it definitely reads more like poetry than straight prose. And as with every time I'm confronted with poetry, I realize I do not have a poet's soul. It's the kind of book that should be read slowly, savouring everything and with a pencil in hand. Unfortunately, I'm very bad at reading that way.

The book is a letter from a queer Vietnamese-American man to his PTSD-ridden mother, and it jumps around from scene to scene, with lots of metaphors and symbolism that was a bit much for my literal brain. It includes scenes from his mother's and grandmother's lives during the war, his childhood, his sexual awakening, and his first boyfriend's overdose. So pretty much all the trigger warnings, as it can be pretty graphic.

His writing is absolutely gorgeous. It is raw, and gutting. The emotions in every scene are so powerful. I'm just maybe... not the right person to appreciate them. I prefer a bit more story and narrative drive, and the book is all style. I did appreciate this unique perspective, and I can understand why everyone is raving about it. It is gorgeous. It just also made me feel like a big dummy.