Brothers and Ghosts

"the vietnamese word for ghost — or, if you stress it differently, for mother" many protagonists, three countries, one family. if you always wanted to learn more about the vietnam war and what it did to vietnamese families, this is one book you should definitely pick up. even within the same family there are language barriers, different emotions, expectations, memories and, in some ways, even different cultures. being settled in berlin, saigon and los angeles, this vietnamese family is about as chaotic as it gets. i wanted to read this novel in german, english and vietnamese simultaneously. sadly, i don’t even know vietnamese. on nearly 270 pages, khue pham tells the story of a vietnamese diaspora family in a way that makes you understand every single person, even if you don’t always agree with them. it makes sense why minh moved to germany to study and became politically active. it makes sense why khieu wants to be called kim. it makes sense why the brothers minh and son weren’t in contact for fifteen years. none of their decisions happen out of nowhere. you just have to look behind the scenes. what i loved most is that this book never tries to paint anyone as simply right or wrong. everyone carries their own version of history, shaped by where they grew up, what they lost and what they were taught to remember. it reminded me that family history is never just one story. it’s dozens of stories trying to exist at the same time. already rightfully praised by ocean vuong, i can only agree with him. brothers and ghosts is one of those novels that quietly teaches you something while also telling a genuinely moving family story.