WHAT WE'RE READING: On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

Why we chose it: 

 

The title sums up this novel well – gorgeous. It is written in the form of a letter from the narrator, Little Dog, to his illiterate mother. It is a poetic and unique coming-of-age story about surviving the aftermath of trauma.The letter is an exploration in comprehending and expressing difficult memories rather than about the direct communication with Little Dog’s mother. The novel touches on themes of race, nationality, gender, sexuality and the question of what constitutes a family. Ocean Vuong’s debut novel is stunning and haunting at the same time.

 

 

About the author:

 

Ocean Vuong is a Vietnamese American poet, essayist and novelist. Vuong is a recipient of the 2014 Ruth Lilly/Sargent Rosenberg fellowship from the Poetry Foundation, a 2016 Whiting Award, and the 2017 T.S. Eliot Prize for his poetry. His debut novel, On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, was published in 2019.