Author: Kim Thúy; translated by Shelia Fishmann
Pages: 141
Published: 2012 (first published 2009)
Genre: Autobiographical Fiction
Edition: Paperback
Source: Library
Description: Ru. In Vietnamese it means lullaby; in French it is a small stream, but also signifies a flow--of tears, blood, money. Kim Thúy's Ru is literature at its most crystalline: the flow of a life on the tides of unrest and on to more peaceful waters. In vignettes of exquisite clarity, sharp observation and sly wit, we are carried along on an unforgettable journey from a palatial residence in Saigon to a crowded and muddy Malaysian refugee camp, and onward to a new life in Quebec. There, the young girl feels the embrace of a new community, and revels in the chance to be part of the American Dream. As an adult, the waters become rough again: now a mother of two sons, she must learn to shape her love around the younger boy's autism. (via Goodreads)
Thoughts: I first heard about the book through the Canada Reads program that is held on a yearly basis, in which five books compete with each other to show which book should be read by all Canadians.
While the book was fairly easy to read, I felt as though it could have been a poem, as each segment seemed to flow into the next segment, even if the prior segment did not really relate to the previous segment.
Bottom line: While I had some issues with the book, I really liked how the sections transitioned smoothly and that book showed that a short book can have just as large an impact as a longer book through the use of language. Highly Recommended.
Rating: 4/5
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