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_askthebookbug 's review for:
House of Sticks
by Ly Tran
• r e c o m m e n d a t i o n •
When you read someone's memoir it exposes a side of them that nobody else knows. There's a lot of vulnerability attached to their stories because you get to read not only about their good days but also the days when they hit rock bottom. Before I read House of Sticks, I was aware of immigrant stories but not one in such detail. When Ly Tran's family moved to the US from Vietnam back in 1993, they came with nothing. They barely had money to scrape through each day let alone to buy warm clothes to keep them from freezing. We are often told that hardwork is rewarding but it's not always the case because sometimes no matter how much blood and sweat you shed, things don't improve much. You remain where you are. House of Sticks is not Ly's story alone but is an all encompassing moving story of her family.
Ly's father was a POW before arriving in the US and it doesn't take long for us to know that he's not in the right state of mind. With a fury that overpowers everything else and acute paranoia towards the government, he refuses to give his children certain basic needs. When her mother takes up a job in a nail salon, she firsthand witnesses racism and hate towards her family. Her brothers leave the nest one after the other with relief and Ly struggles with abandonment issues. There are so many instances when I felt my heat tear because she was denied care, even when her eyesight got so bad that she couldn't see faces of those in front of her. Amidst all this, Ly still goes to college and builds a life but not before facing severe mental health issues. This memoir has a lot of trauma packed into it along with poverty and depression. But Ly also receives support from her friends and teachers most of them taking the shape of a guardian angel.
When the book ends, it's not with a heavy heart but one filled with hope and happiness. And this is what makes House on Sticks a brilliant read. Knowing Ly's life has opened up a new way in which I can now view at immigrants. I send them my love.
Rating : 4.8/5.
When you read someone's memoir it exposes a side of them that nobody else knows. There's a lot of vulnerability attached to their stories because you get to read not only about their good days but also the days when they hit rock bottom. Before I read House of Sticks, I was aware of immigrant stories but not one in such detail. When Ly Tran's family moved to the US from Vietnam back in 1993, they came with nothing. They barely had money to scrape through each day let alone to buy warm clothes to keep them from freezing. We are often told that hardwork is rewarding but it's not always the case because sometimes no matter how much blood and sweat you shed, things don't improve much. You remain where you are. House of Sticks is not Ly's story alone but is an all encompassing moving story of her family.
Ly's father was a POW before arriving in the US and it doesn't take long for us to know that he's not in the right state of mind. With a fury that overpowers everything else and acute paranoia towards the government, he refuses to give his children certain basic needs. When her mother takes up a job in a nail salon, she firsthand witnesses racism and hate towards her family. Her brothers leave the nest one after the other with relief and Ly struggles with abandonment issues. There are so many instances when I felt my heat tear because she was denied care, even when her eyesight got so bad that she couldn't see faces of those in front of her. Amidst all this, Ly still goes to college and builds a life but not before facing severe mental health issues. This memoir has a lot of trauma packed into it along with poverty and depression. But Ly also receives support from her friends and teachers most of them taking the shape of a guardian angel.
When the book ends, it's not with a heavy heart but one filled with hope and happiness. And this is what makes House on Sticks a brilliant read. Knowing Ly's life has opened up a new way in which I can now view at immigrants. I send them my love.
Rating : 4.8/5.