The Refugees
Viet Thanh Nguyen
I didn’t originally pick this for myself, but ended up reading it on a camping trip when I finished my book and commandeered Elise’s. I mostly enjoyed it, but found it a little uneven. The standouts for me were “War Years,” “The Other Man,” and (best) “I’d Love You To Want Me.” The weaker stories (“The Americans,” “Fatherland”) seemed to me like they were trying to hard to make A Point. Nguyen is at his best when he depicts the nuance of individual characters without making them stand for anything.