"Even if all language is futile, we dream of someone who might understand what we're trying to say."

This is the story of neighbours Sonny and Vince, both 16, both children of Vietnamese refugees and both navigating the path to adulthood in Cabramatta during the 90s. I found this a little slow to begin with, but I understand this was to set up our main characters as individuals before their stories began to intertwine. I couldn't get enough of the second half. The structure and language of numerous sentences throughout were mesmerising and brutally beautiful. The scenes that depicted boat travel were very confronting yet also incredibly educational. I loved reading this and learning more about the Vietnamese immigrant community here in Australia.