The Magic Fish | Trung Le Nguyen
256 pages | Random House | 10.13.20
In this gorgeous graphic novel that Entertainment Weekly called "one of the most astounding . . . of the year," fairy tales are the only way one teen boy can express himself to his parents, who are Vietnamese immigrants. But how will he find the words to tell them that he's gay?
Tiến and his mother come from different cultures--she's an immigrant from Vietnam still struggling to learn English; he's been raised in America--but through the fairy tales he checks out from the local library, those differences are erased.
But though Tiến's mother's understanding of the language of her adopted homeland continues to improve as they read her tales of love, loss, and travel across distant shores together, there's one conversation that still eludes Tiến--how to come out to her and his father. Is there even a way to explain what he's going through in Vietnamese? And without one, how will his parents ever accept him?
This beautifully illustrated graphic novel speaks to the complexity of family, and to the power of stories in bringing us together even when we don't know the right words.
But though Tiến's mother's understanding of the language of her adopted homeland continues to improve as they read her tales of love, loss, and travel across distant shores together, there's one conversation that still eludes Tiến--how to come out to her and his father. Is there even a way to explain what he's going through in Vietnamese? And without one, how will his parents ever accept him?
This beautifully illustrated graphic novel speaks to the complexity of family, and to the power of stories in bringing us together even when we don't know the right words.
