On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
by Ocean Vuong · 2019
Literary Fiction · ranked #56 in category
A young Vietnamese-American man writes a letter to his illiterate mother — about the grandfather he never knew, the grandmother who survived the Vietnam War, his own adolescence in Hartford Connecticut, and a first love that ended in opioid overdose. Vuong's debut novel is prose as concentrated as poetry, a meditation on language, inheritance and what immigrants pass down without knowing it.
UK visitors: Bookshop.org supports independent bookshops. All links open a search — never a specific listing. As an Amazon Associate and Bookshop.org affiliate we earn from qualifying purchases.
The verdict
- Category
- Literary Fiction
- Author
- Ocean Vuong
- Standing
- Essential Read
More by Ocean Vuong
If you liked this
More literary fiction worth your shelf. See the full books like On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous list. Or try our book club guide.
Featured in
Ready to read it?
Get On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
As an Amazon Associate, Bookshop.org and CJ Affiliate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Between books? Read magazines too.
Book readers love Magzter — 10,000+ magazines and newspapers on any device, 50% off the annual GOLD plan.
Start Reading — 50% off Annual Plan →