Russell (author of Across the Mekong River) gracefully captures the fraught atmosphere of 1931 French colonial Laos through the eyes of Geneviève “Vivi” Dubois, 18-years-old and fresh out of the orphanage in which she has spent the last 14 years of her life. Her memories of her family are still raw, and Vivi finds it too painful to crush her hope, however small, that her mother will, one day, return for her. With her new status as an adult, she vows to find her family and “discover a way back to my beginning,” but that dream, sparked inside a half-Laos and half-French sheltered young woman just entering a world that doesn’t want to accept her, is fragile at best.Laos—and its divided, tense undertones—springs to life in Russell’s capable hands, as Vivi desperately tries to decide where she belongs. Her struggles mirror the greater battles of the Laos people to find their own footing against the backdrop of France’s colonization: Vivi wisely describes the orphanage girls as “uprooted—ripped from our families and native Lao culture, everything familiar, to be raised as French citizens,” only to be turned out into a world that refuses them (“Many terms had been coined for our unseemly blend of races” Vivi remarks). Despite the disregard of her surroundings, Vivi perseveres in her mission, devoted to recovering her family and, in the process of growing into her own, finds herself torn between two suitors and unsure of what kind of future she wants to build.
Russell’s gentle narration allows readers to experience Vivi’s blossoming firsthand, in poetic prose that stirs vivid imagery, as when Vivi observes “I drew in a deep breath and began with what I remembered of my childhood…It was like a great spool of thread rolling across the floor and gathering speed.” This coming-of-age is a stunning declaration of resilience and belonging.
Takeaway: Stunning coming-of-age set in French colonial Laos.
Comparable Titles: Helen Fripp’s The French House, Jennifer Anton’s Under the Light of the Italian Moon.
Production grades
Cover: B-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
