what i'm reading now

a serendipitous read

in June, a friend of mine offered to let me use her printer to print copies of my manuscript. i sat on her couch as the pages printed, and she set a pile of books in front of me and said, “here’s a bunch of books that i’m giving away.” one book in particular caught my eye— Ocean Voung’s newest novel. The Emperor of Gladness had just been released a few weeks prior, and when i read about it i knew i needed a copy because i enjoyed his last novel so much. Nina handed me this hardcover copy, and i looked at her astonished that she would just give it away. “i already have my own copy,” she said. i stuffed it into my bag along with a few others from her pile of giveaways and later discovered a handwritten note from Ocean, dated a day before my birthday this year. this book was meant to find its way to me.

recently read: Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

this book was a nice little escape from reality. a book with easily digestible vocabulary, a fun story, along with a small dose of the real world— enough to make you truly immersed in the story. the world of Tom Lake is a beautiful rendering of Michigan; one that makes an idealist romantic like me ache for the life of Lara, both her past and her present. i tore through this book as quickly as i possibly could because i wanted to know her storied past as much as her three daughters did.

Tom Lake reminds me to consider what i have and to wonder how my life, my partner’s life, my parents’ lives could be different now if they’d taken different paths in the past.

what i’m reading now: The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong

i was honestly a little worried when i first began reading this book because the language of the first chapter was so dense, i could only get through two pages at a time on my commute to work. i had forgotten that the author of this novel was also a gifted poet. Ocean Vuong paints the reader a perfect word painting of the setting of this story with such precision that i found myself standing in the middle of the story myself, walking down the decrepit streets of his small Connecticut town. you find yourself following the protagonist through every door he enters and seeing exactly what he sees, past and present, because Vuong leaves no detail out of his characters’ experiences.

i had seen some reviews that this book bore resemblance to On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, which drew me to reading it. and while there are some similar nods to Vuong’s childhood and culture, this story does stand on its own in its storyline and the emotion it draws out of you.

i’m about halfway through and am excited to see where Vuong leads me next.