On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

The Novel On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong is a letter from the narrator, Little Dog, to his immigrant mother, Rose. His mother cannot read, as her formal education was cut short at age seven due to the Vietnam War, so he knows his mother will not be able to understand the letter. Still, he writes it anyway, not as a means of communication, but as a way to process his memories and emotions following a tragic loss. His family moved from Vietnam to escape the war when he was only two years old, and his mother and grandmother, whom he lives with in a lower-class neighborhood in Hartford CT, both carry great trauma from the war. Growing up, Little Dog suffers as his well-meaning but mentally ill mother hits him at home and his classmates bully him at school.

At the age of fourteen, Little Dog gets a job working on a tobacco farm and meets Trevor, a fellow worker and grandson of Buford, the owner of the farm. Little Dog becomes very close with Trevor and finds out he is not as privileged as he once thought, discovering that he works at the farm to get away from his drunken father and has a serious drug problem. He and Trevor begin a tumultuous relationship, serving for him as both a source of comfort and agonizing heartbreak. While Little Dog learns a lot about himself and of life through his relationship with Trevor, this book’s paramount theme is the importance of language. Little Dog comes to realize the weight (and burden) he carries when he translates for his mother and grandmother. He is responsible for translating America to them, and most importantly translating them to America, making his immigrant family visible to a foreign country.

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong is a beautifully written book. The author Vuong is mainly a poet, and it is clear to see by his skillfully crafted prose and attention to detail. The narration of Little Dog features a sense of raw honesty, pain, and tenderness, making his character easy to empathize with. One criticism I have is that I do feel like the novel is somewhat confusing and difficult to understand at times. Some parts I’d even say were clear as mud. I had an overall positive experience with the book, but I can’t give quite the raving review as I did for the other books I’ve blogged about. I also think that this book will not be everyone’s cup of tea, as the writing style is quite unique and evidently reflects the author’s poetry background in a way that some could find difficult to read. However, if you’re interested in a meaningful novel about family connections with extremely thoughtful and precise language, then this is the book for you.