Grass Roof, Tin Roof
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Book Overview
In this stunning novel about a Vietnamese family resettling in the isolation of California gold country, Dao Strom investigates the myth of westward progress and the consequences of cultural displacement.
Told from multiple perspectives and interwoven with the intimate reflections of a middle child, Grass Roof, Tin Roof begins with the story of Tran, a Vietnamese writer facing government persecution, who flees her homeland during the exodus of 1975 and brings her two children to the West. Here she marries a Danish American man who has survived a different war. He promises understanding and guidance, but the psychic consequences of his past soon hinder his relationships with the family. The children, for whom the war is now a distant shadow, struggle to understand the world around them on their own terms. In delicate, innovative prose, Strom's characters experience the collision of cultures and the spiritual aftermath of war on the most visceral level. Grass Roof, Tin Roof is a beautiful work of profundity and empathy, powerful emotion and rare insight.Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0618145591
ISBN13:9780618145591
Release Date:January 2003
Publisher:Houghton Mifflin
Length:240 Pages
Weight:0.55 lbs.
Dimensions:0.8" x 5.4" x 8.4"
Related Subjects
Anthologies Domestic Life Fiction Literary Literature & Fiction Short Stories Women's FictionCustomer Reviews
1 rating
a sincere and haunting read
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 21 years ago
Although I agree with some of the reviewers' comments that this is an uneven first novel, there are many gorgeous passages and vivid images that should not be missed. Strom's story moves gracefully from one continent to the next, from one context to the next, and in so doing, captures a multi-faceted and fascinating portrait of contemporary Californians and the current state of the American "melting pot". This story will stick with you, and, as the reviewers say, leave you wishing for more. In this case, consider that a compliment rather than a fault.
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