2024 the best we could review

Price: $19.99 - $11.95
(as of Dec 20, 2024 11:05:11 UTC - Details)

A national bestseller and American Book Award winner, The Best We Could Do is an intimate and poignant graphic novel portraying one family’s journey from war-torn Vietnam from debut author Thi Bui.

In what Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen calls “a book to break your heart and heal it,” The Best We Could Do brings to life Thi Bui’s journey of understanding and provides inspiration to all of those who search for a better future while longing for a simpler past.

This beautifully illustrated and emotional story is an evocative memoir exploring the anguish of immigration and the lasting effects that displacement has on a child and her family. Bui documents the story of her family’s daring escape after the fall of South Vietnam in the 1970s, and the difficulties they faced building new lives for themselves.

At the heart of Bui’s story is a universal struggle: While adjusting to life as a first-time mother, she ultimately discovers what it means to be a parent—the sacrifices, the unnoticed gestures, and the depths of unspoken love. Despite how impossible it seems to take on the simultaneous roles of both parent and child, Bui pushes through. With haunting, poetic writing and breathtaking art, she examines the strength of family, the importance of identity, and the meaning of home.

National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) Finalist
ABA Indies Introduce Winter
ALA Notable Books Selection

From the Publisher

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Abrams ComicArts; Reprint edition (April 17, 2018)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 344 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1419718789
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1419718786
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 13 years and up
Grade level ‏ : ‎ 8 and up
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.75 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.65 x 1.35 x 9.1 inches
Reviewer: nicole gaus
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Moving work of art
Review: I was really impressed with this book. I have never cared much for illustrated books but this was done beautifully. The illustrations are so creative. The story of her family's life is so enlightening, although heart breaking. It is a reminder to those of us that have only experienced life in America, that we have it GOOD! The author's experience as a daughter, sister and mother is incredibly relatable. I highly recommend.

Reviewer: USA
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Great story into the life of Thi and her family
Review: This was just the right balance of graphics and literature for the price.Being a Vietnamese American, I was on the lookout for historical graphic novels and there are very few, but this one was just right. It is well written and provided enough context for me to see her POV growing up.

Reviewer: Pomegranate Pear
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Valuable perspective; moving; beautiful
Review: I loved this book. I devoured the entire thing in one sitting on a Sunday afternoon. It's a beautiful and tragic and warm story all at the same time. I feel like a lot of times when we hear about the Vietnam war in the United States, it's told from the perspective of American soldiers rather than the Southern Vietnamese who lost their home land. Really refreshing to see this diverse and nuanced perspective. I look forward to Thi Bui's future works.

Reviewer: Victor Orozco
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Comic Book = Homework
Review: I got this for my Ethnic Studies class and was eager to read a graphic novel and call it homework. While not as thoroughly covered as other material I studied in class this was still fascinating to sit down and read.Thi Bui writes a memoir of her life from when she gave birth to her son. With memories of her labor as the first thing she then begins to question her mortality, via the life and times of those closest to her, specifically her family. Thi Bui had lived her life in a good home but via a strange series of incidents that make it less than ideal. In time she realizes that it’s her parents’ trauma via having endured what can truly be called even worse than less than ideal, outright abusive. But I guess that’s what happens when you live two decades of war. World War II, the Indochina War, and the Vietnam War. Nam Bui and Hang Troung endured life via war in a country that had endured ages of colonial rule, and fierce nationalistic movements, all the while trying to live their lives. But despite all the abuse they endured, whether from bad parents, a country at war, miscarriages, and doing their best to make it alive after the final war’s end as refugees to America. Truly living up to the adage of doing “The Best We Could,” so that their children would live a better life.My class studied the Vietnamese/Indochina experience in our Ethnic Studies class, I’ve also read and watched a lot about the Vietnam War, and I have a great respect for the people who endured a cause that most Americans refuse to acknowledge. I especially found the art, while not as realistic at times, was still complex, giving a realistic vibe while presenting it in a simplified form. There was a lot of depth and range that came from the art, and it tells the story very well. Many compliments to the author for sharing such a great story of her life and her family.

Reviewer: Kittee Catt
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Wonderful!
Review: This is by far the best book I have read this year. It is written with so much love and understanding by the author for her parents as she learns of their individual backgrounds of what took place throughout their lives, the impact of how the turmoil of the country and their journey coming to America had on them. Through this, she comes to terms with who they are as her parents and she their daughter while embracing motherhood herself. I had some difficulty with this type of book but it may be me, however it didn't detract from the story enough to affect the rating.

Reviewer: Sav
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: A well composed memoir
Review: Full review on nguyentoread.comThe Best We Could Do is Thi Bui's graphic memoir. Thi was born in Vietnam three months before the Vietnam War reached what we consider to be the end of the war. She came to America with her family in 1978. Bui's memoir spans multiple generations. In learning of her mother's and father's pasts, we learn the history of their parents. We see the struggles and pains of two people from very different walks of life trying to live during a time of war and chaos. We see glimpses of the agony everyone in the middle of the Vietnam War faced. Those who were not directly involved on either side but were caught in the middle of larger powers at war. This memoir more closely details the lives of her parents leading up to them arriving in America and making their life there. I was unsure if this memoir would focus largely on the experience of being a Vietnamese immigrant in America. There were parts that showed how it was for Bui's parents in a country where tensions were still high after the Vietnam War, where discrimination largely due to that was overt, and where degrees were not recognized and people who had spent their lives working and creating careers for themselves were not qualified for most work and had to hurdle multiple challenges to learn a language and complete education all over again if they wanted to provide a better life for their children. What Bui so beautifully captures in this memoir is the why behind how her parents were in raising her. Although Bui was born in Vietnam she was young when her family arrived in America. So I think her experience is one that many first generation Vietnamese-American people of my generation can understand and sympathize with. The wanting to know why their parents are the way they are but unable to ask because many have parents, like Bui's mother, who reluctantly share their stories and don't allow their children that glimpse that could help them better understand. In the panel which was most poignant to me, Bui draws her father as he looks over her work that would become The Best We Could Do. He says "You know how it was for me. And why later I wouldn't be... normal."

Reviewer: Rosie
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Great book!
Review: I got this book for one of my college classes and didn’t know what to expect due to the illustrations. But overall this book teaches us lessons and it’s very eye opening.

Reviewer: wingu
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Read this for a university English class. One of my favourites that semester!

Reviewer: Rui
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui is a poignant and thought-provoking memoir illustrated in the form of a graphic novel. Through the experiences of multiple generations during times of war and peace, the book explores a profound philosophical theme: survival versus living. It delves into the eternal question of what life should be.The narrative examines the different lives and minds of individuals across generations, shedding light on the complex interplay between personal efforts and external factors such as policies, regulations, welfare, international relations, and the natural environment. It emphasizes that numerous factors determine whether life can take a positive trajectory, highlighting that it is not solely dictated by individual willpower.In circumstances beyond our control, such as war or political upheaval, the mantra becomes "the best we could do is keep alive”, emphasizing the importance of survival. However, in times of freedom and peace, the focus shifts to "the best we could do is enjoy life”, advocating for embracing and cherishing the moments of life.Thi Bui's memoir masterfully navigates through these themes, weaving together personal narratives with historical context to offer a profound meditation on the human experience. It prompts readers to reflect on their own lives and the delicate balance between survival and living. The book serves as a poignant reminder that while external forces may shape our circumstances, our response to them ultimately determines the quality of our lives.

Reviewer: David Reyes Morales
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Muy buen servicio

Reviewer: kathling
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: reçu à temps et dans le même état que promis.

Reviewer: Trinh Lu Tran Diem
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: The best we could do is a very nice, insightful story about family, love and strength to go over all pains after war.