lê thi diem thúy, The gangster we are all looking for, 2003

The lives of Vietnamese boat people as immigrants to the cultural strangeness of the US, this largely autobiographical novel is sometimes stunningly lucid, as if lê is treating us to some faded super-8mm home movies with the sound turned off. Despite the simplicity of the story the sophistication of her writing is very evident and always elegant, somehow making this book both ordinary and extraordinary. Highly recommended.  PY

Peter Dimock, A Short Rhetoric for Leaving the Family, 1998

A man writes a long letter to two boys, both relatives, outlining to them the rules of effective rhetorical speech. He has a purpose: to expose his father’s shame as an architect of America’s role in the Vietnam War, and to arm them in similarly turning against the American policy of ‘continual reprisal’ in its foreign affairs – hence A Short Rhetoric will be better understood by those who already see American foreign policy as being one of the great evils of today’s world. The language is deliberately obtuse and idiosyncratic, and I would defy anyone other than the most hardened practitioners of political spin to tease out its intricacies – it’s only the very useful cover blurb that can help put this entirely singular novel into understandable context for the rest of us. It gets under your skin eventually and it will remain there, but A Short Rhetoric is a real slow burner that demands both patience and thought, its real purpose being to challenge and educate rather than entertain. A short, sharp shock, and an unforgettable experience.   PY