From the Bookshelf of Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge…

The Best We Could Do

Thi Bui

Discussion: 2017 Read Harder Challenge

Why we're reading this: Bui's family escaped to the US by boat after the Vietnam War. This beautiful graphic memoir relates their…more
[close] Bui's family escaped to the US by boat after the Vietnam War. This beautiful graphic memoir relates their life before the war and their perilous journey to safety.

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 44 topics — 5,607 comments total

2017 Read Harder Challenge

This topic has been closed to new comments.

* Complete 2017 RHC Task List
By Book Riot · 1 post · 6015 views

last updated Dec 15, 2016 05:50AM

* 2017 Read Harder Challenge
By Book Riot · 1 post · 3503 views

last updated Dec 15, 2016 05:44AM

showing 10 of 14 topics view all »

What Members Thought

Apr 04, 2017 Carly Thompson rated it liked it

Shelves: asian-characters, graphic-novels, memoir, 2017

Moving graphic novel memoir about a Vietnamese family's life in Vietnam from the 1940s during the childhood's of the mother and father, through the 1960s and up to resettlement in America in the late 1970s/early 1980s. The author, Thi, was a very young child when her family left communist Vietnam and when her son is born in 2005, she is moved to learn more about her parent's pasts and their struggles.

I enjoyed the sections about the parents' upbringings and the family's adjustments to life in A ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Apr 12, 2017 Sarah left GR rated it it was amazing

Shelves: nonfiction, memoir, graphic-novels, read-harder-2017

When a librarian/artist friend recommends a graphic novel this enthusiastically, you know you need to read it:

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?stor... ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

May 05, 2017 Molly rated it really liked it

Shelves: graphic-novels-and-comics, aapi

This story about one family's harrowing and bittersweet journey to the US from Vietnam is not only timely, but also full of Vietnam's history as a country. I learned a lot and I think anyone could benefit from reading this graphic novel. Heartbreaking, but ultimately a story of hope and family connection. ...more

Like · see review

Oct 21, 2018 Megan rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: acrma8, memoirs, graphic-novels

This is such a beautiful story! Seeing the development of Thi Bui’s relationship to her parents as she learned and told their story brought me to tears.

Like · see review