The Refugees by Viet Than Nguyen
Written by Kristy Dolson
I picked up The Refugees by Viet Than Nguyen, a Vietnamese-American novelist, because I wanted to expand my horizons regarding people fleeing war and political upheaval. It is a beautiful and heartbreaking collection of short stories – as one would expect from a Pulitzer Prize winner – crossing boundaries of race, nationality, language, and sexuality to lay bare the foundation of humanity: our love for one another. I enjoyed the reading experience, and the themes of belonging and self-fulfillment in the face of prejudice, fear, and loss were profoundly touching.
Nguyen wrote this collection not just to activate empathy in the reader but also to explore questions of home and belonging – and how the effects of immigration complicate those questions. The two countries involved, Vietnam and the U.S.A., are placed in sharp relief throughout the book as the characters travel back and forth between them, both figuratively and literally. What I found surprising was the diversity of characters and breadth of experience on display here: from a young homosexual man discovering his desires in a new country to a young woman pursuing a humanitarian compulsion in an old country – with neither of them able to find self-fulfillment in the countries of their birth. It is this opposition and duality that make this book so intriguing and engaging to read and consider. The cast of protagonists is neither exclusively Vietnamese nor immigrant, thus expanding the opportunities for connection.
The book consists of eight short stories. Some are written in first person and others in third person. The writing is not overly flowery, as Nguyen does an excellent job of unpacking each story, getting to the heart of the protagonists’ dilemmas without wasting words. There are no breathtaking passages here, but it is shocking and memorable nonetheless in its simplicity. There were several characters and situations that resonated with me as I read, particularly the young woman who ghostwrites because she is afraid to live her own life and the older woman whose husband has lost himself to dementia. Despite their losses, each of these characters carried a strength within them that gave me hope. It is the nature of a short story to leave the reader wondering, hoping for a positive outcome to the protagonist’s struggle. At the end of this book, I felt uplifted by the thought that love can outlast tragedy and hate.
Viet Nguyen and his family came to the U.S. as refugees in the 1970s, and his work has been driven by their lived experiences. When President Trump signed an executive order effectively banning immigrants from Muslim countries and capping refugee resettlement, Nguyen called on his fellow refugee writers to speak up. The result of that was The Displaced, a book of essays from writers around the world urging readers to witness the reality of the refugee experience. Refugees and immigration will always exist, and there will always be those in opposition to both. But these books ask the reader to root out prejudice and fear. If we take the time to seek out their voices and listen to their stories, it is possible for understanding to grow. It is 2019: Should not human beings, regardless of race, nationality, language, or sexual orientation feel that they can belong anywhere?
The Author: Kristy Dolson lived in South Korea for five years before taking a year off to travel, read, and spend time with her family in Canada and Australia. She holds a Bachelor of Education and now lives in Yeosu, where she splits her time between teaching at the new Jeollanamdo International Education Institute and reading as much as she can.