Danielle Badra’s first full-length collection is beautifully heartbreaking as she writes candidly about the loss of her sister. “The Short Way,” in particular, brings tears to my eyes as the image reminds me of my own mother’s last day on earth in ICU. I also love the lyrical beauty in “Pianissimo.” Furthermore, Badra received an MFA from George Mason University.

I must admit. I enjoyed reading Stevenson’s Human Resources even though I didn’t understand everything she has written. Her poems are modern, lyrical, and accessible. I appreciate “Work From Home” and many more if I re-read them again, which I will since it is a slim collection.

I was having trouble keeping up with the Dương women in Carolyn Huỳnh’s debut novel. They were dramatic, emotional, and obnoxious. As I read deeper, I began to embrace the messiness of the characters and let Huỳnh untangled her tales, in which she brought together the stories of multigenerational Vietnamese women. It’s an engaging, heartfelt, and hilarious read. Keep up the great work, Ms. Huỳnh.

Grace Li’s debut novel revolves around five Chinese-American ivy-league students who were willing to risk their future to rob museums around the world. In addition to the 50-million-dollar reward, their mission was to return the fountainheads back to China. Even though Li’s writing was concise and easy to follow, this book took me a month to finish. My heart was not in the heist story; therefore, I took a passive approach. Nevertheless, it was a good read on the Chinese-American experience. I passed it on to my oldest son,

By the way, Li’s résumé is quite impressive:

Grace D. Li grew up in Pearland, Texas, and is a graduate of Duke University, where she studied biology and creative writing. She lives in Northern California and attends medical school at Stanford University. Portrait of a Thief is her debut novel and is currently in development at Netflix, with Grace serving as an executive producer of the series.

Reading Forché’s poems felt like learning to read English when I first came to America. I read the words but didn’t understand the meaning. Needless to say, I was lost in a poetry of of words. The only poem I understood is “Hue: From a Notebook.”

I read this collection in one sitting. I didn’t get too much out of it. Bidart is the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for poetry; therefore; his work must be good. I’ll reread this collection again, but I also found something I like from “The Moral Arc of the Universe Bends Toward Justice”.

I had been shied from poetry because I didn’t get it. Lately, I have read more poems online and even started a poetry category on this blog to share poems I liked. Over the weekend, I went to the library to look for poetry books to read and came across Amanda Gorman’s Call Us What We Carry. It’s a beautiful, powerful collection. From politics to pandemic, equality to justice, her writing is sharp and accessible. I didn’t understand everything I read, but I just loved her craft. I am going to get myself a copy so I can reread it and read it with my sons. Of course, I saved my favorite verses.

Đọc mấy truyện đầu không cảm nhận được vì chưa quen cách viết của tác giả. Khi nắm được lối đưa văn của tác giả thì mấy truyện sau cảm thấy hứng thú hơn. Tôi đọc tập truyện ngắn này khá lâu vì gần đây viết nhiều hơn đọc. Đồng thời bị phân trí nên cũng không nhớ rõ những câu chuyện đã đọc. Tôi chỉ nhớ nhất là truyện cuối “Tục đế” với đề tài xã hội, tình dục, và Phật giáo. Chắc chắn sẽ quay lại với tập truyện ngắn này trong tương lai.

Wang’s memoir, in which she takes readers through her immigrant struggles, reminds me of my own childhood. I shared similar experiences as someone who didn’t speak a word of English and lived in an cockroach-infested apartment. Her family faced more challenges than our because they were undocumented. We were chained migrations. Although Wang’s writing is moving, I find the content a bit too long. For almost 300 pages, Wang only covered up to her middle school years. She skipped her entire life in Canada where her family had to moved to because they were still illegal in America. It’s still a good read.

From compelling writing to gripping story lines, Jean Hanff Korelitz’s The Plot keeps you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end. It’s a masterpiece of fiction. I don’t want to give the plot away; therefore, just read it for yourself if you’re into novels.