What if your life began in the shadow of war, your very existence a stark reminder of your nation's suffering? What if you were compelled to search for your parents and your identity in a land that seemed to reject you? What if escape beckoned, but demanded you abandon everything you held dear? These are the haunting questions that linger within the characters of *Dust Child*, a profoundly moving novel by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, the acclaimed author of *The Mountains Sing*. *Dust Child* intricatel...

"She had tried to live an honest life, but war had given her no choice."

I'm an emotional wreck. I wasn't expecting Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai's *Dust Child* to affect me this way. This book completely shattered me.

Full review of *Dust Child* to follow in a few days. Stay tuned for my complete thoughts on this powerful novel.

Reading *Dust Child* hits hard. Like a slap in the face. It confronts you with the brutal reality of the collateral damage inflicted by such a devastating and morally corrupt war. The exploitation of women, the Amerasian orphans abandoned after the American GIs left, the discrimination and torment these mixed-race children endured simply for being born with the features of the enemy. It's a stark and unflinching look at a dark chapter of history. A "dust child" is a homeless orphan in Vietnam. ...

In a Nutshell: *Dust Child* reveals some great insights about Vietnam and the aftermath of the American war. The plot was somewhat predictable, but overall, a worthy OwnVoices work. Story Synopsis: 2016. Middle-aged Phong is the son of a Black American soldier and a Vietnamese mother, but as he grew up in an orphanage, he doesn’t know anything about his parents except their race. He has now decided to search for his father and using his help, escape to the US with his family to avoid the drudg...

I'd been meaning to read 'The Mountains Sing,' but I jumped at the chance to read/listen to *Dust Child*. While I didn't find the plot to be groundbreaking, the characters truly come alive in this beautiful story – one filled with both tragedy and hope. In the present day, Phong, an Amerasian – born to an American father and a Vietnamese mother during the Vietnam War – is struggling to get a US visa. Then there's Dan, a former helicopter pilot during the war, now living in the US, haunted by th...

In 1969, after witnessing their friend's financial success working in Saigon and helping her family, two South Vietnamese sisters leave home to follow her, hoping to earn enough to pay off their parents' debts after they lost their house. Well… the job is at The Hollywood Bar, where they entertain American GIs.The story alternates between 1969 and the present day, exploring the repercussions of fleeting love affairs, Amerasian children, and American fathers searching for their offspring, along w...

I absolutely loved THE MOUNTAINS SING, so DUST CHILD was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. It took me a little while to really get into it, but once I did, I was completely hooked. The title, DUST CHILD, refers to the term "bụi đời" (meaning "life of dust" or "dusty life"), which generally describes the mixed-race children born during and after the Vietnam War. This story hits incredibly close to home. I have several mixed-race cousins who were born in Vietnam during that period. Wh...

I recently received my Goodreads giveaway, a copy of Dust Child, in the mail. It was a total surprise because I didn't even remember entering (though I definitely did). The publisher was kind enough to include a note and a small package of Vietnamese coffee (I'm assuming it's coffee since it wasn't mentioned in the note and I couldn't read the writing on the package). I was excited because I've never read Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai before, and I love coffee! (And I apologize for not using the diacritic...

Dear Readers,I'm absolutely thrilled that my second novel, *Dust Child*, is finally out in the world!The seed for *Dust Child* was planted many years ago. Growing up in Southern Vietnam in the late seventies and eighties, I witnessed firsthand the discrimination faced by Amerasians – children born from wartime relationships between American men and Vietnamese women. Over the years, I couldn't stop thinking about them, always hoping life had been kinder than their start suggested.In April 2014, I...

I was lucky enough to receive an early manuscript copy from Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai herself, and I'm already counting down the days until "Dust Child" hits shelves next year. In "Dust Child," Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai once again demonstrates the tenderness and compassion for her characters, the profound understanding of human trauma, and the poetically evocative language that made her debut novel, "The Mountains Sing," an international sensation. The characters in "Dust Child" will stay with you long afte...