Synopses & Reviews
This luminous debut novel follows a young woman from her childhood in Vietnam to her life as an immigrant in the United States — and her necessary return to her homeland.
As a child, isolated from the world in a secretive military encampment with her distant mother, she turns for affection to a sympathetic soldier and to the only other girl in the camp, forming two friendships that will shape the rest of her life.
As a young adult in New York, cut off from her native country and haunted by the scars of her youth, she is still in search of a home. She falls in love with a married woman who is the image of her childhood friend, and follows strangers because they remind her of her soldier. When tragedy arises, she must return to Vietnam to confront the memories of her youth — and recover her identity.
An inspiring meditation on love, loss, and the presence of a past that never dies, the novel explores the ancient question: do we value the people in our lives because of who they are, or because of what we need them to be?
Review
“At no point does Rosewood lose sight of the migrant. She is conscious of an exact suffering; the absent counters in their motion — depicting the remoteness of anyone in transit. Because something is intrinsically lost. And someone is always left behind.” Yasmin Roshanian, BOMB Magazine
Review
“The perfect novel of dislocation. With this extraordinary, artfully constructed and beautifully written debut, Abbigail Rosewood takes her place among the very best of the new wave of Asian-American authors.” James Cañón, author of Tales from the Town of Widows
Review
“A stunning, totally original tale told by a masterful storyteller. Abbigail Rosewood tackles the heaviest topics with a light, magical touch. There is great talent on display here.” Yelena Akhtiorskaya, author of Panic in a Suitcase
Review
"To come to America is to come of age: this is what Abbigail Rosewood reminds us, in prose of an almost ruthless compassion." Joshua Cohen, author of Witz and The Book of Numbers
Review
“A harrowing, wondrously constructed story of childhood and a brilliant meditation on how life is lived today.” Gary Shteyngart, author of Super Sad True Love Story and Little Failure
Review
"In this wise and lyrical debut, Abbigail Rosewood maps journeys through countries and journeys through the psyche in powerful, sensual detail. Every sentence is transporting, in all senses of the word. A gorgeous and resonant novel.” Stacey D’Erasmo, author of Wonderland
About the Author
Abbigail N. Rosewood was born in Vietnam, where she lived until the age of twelve. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Columbia University. An excerpt from her first novel won first place in the Writers Workshop of Asheville Literary Fiction Contest. She lives in New York.