I enjoyed this coming of age memoir. Ly Tran’s journey from Vietnam to Queens, NY features a lot of poverty and hardship. I recommend this one if you like immigrant stories or memoirs.

I appreciate the publisher allowing me to read this book. This book was hard for me at times but its a must read highly recommend.

As I read this, because of the black and white pictures? Because of the cover's color scheme? Because ??? I kept imagining it happening in the 70s... but then it would say something like, "So I turned on the Backstreet Boys" and I was shook. Not ready for memoirs to be about the 90s/ 2000s yet.

Ending felt very abrupt. I mean, it makes sense... there's still so much life out there for you if you're this young... but I guess I'm used to even ya memoirs having a bit more closure at the end

This book was tough to read but absolutely incredible. The writing was absolutely beautiful. I would recommend this book to readers of Crying in H Mart, and I hope that Ly Tran will write more in the future.

I think this was a wonderful memoir. I loved the writing and the story made me feel so many emotions. The vulnerability and Tran's willingness to share made for an impeccable book.

Immigration is a many-faceted topic that is on the news daily. Ly Tran’s memoir presents what it was like to be a Vietnamese immigrant in the early 1990s. Tran is torn between her Buddhist faith, parental expectations, and mainstream US culture. Her family creates their own sweatshop to earn enough money to provide food and a roof over their heads. For years Ly suffers because she can’t see the board but her parents refuse to get her glasses. She is shunned by some of her classmates because she is different. Her story melds pathos and sparks of humor to show that getting into the. US may solve some problems while creating a whole new set. This was an excellent read

House of Sticks is an absolute must read memoir. It is the story of Ly Tran, who moved from Vietnam to NYC in 1993. There is, of course, a culture clash, and it had me really turning the pages. Fans of Crying in H Mart should absolutely read House of Sticks.

I think Ly Tran was born to be a writer. If you don't know about the immigrant experience of a family from a war-torn country, impoverished and beaten down, and then offered a chance here in the US, she will tell you. I am very glad she did. Her experiences were at times shocking and at other times heart-warming. Let's just say, I had no idea.

The difficulties her family faced trying to make a scant living, and even to eat, after arriving in a completely different country, city and cultural landscape, were at times heartbreaking. Ms. Tran offers an intimate glimpse into her growing up years in the US and into her family's struggles. Her writing is honest and real.

I am grateful to have been granted an advanced reader copy from the publisher through NetGalley.com.

When I heard about this book it checked a lot of boxes of books I typically enjoy:⁣
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🔸A memoir⁣
🔸An immigration story⁣
🔸Vietnamese culture⁣
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And guess what? I was completely right. House of Sticks was amazing. You'd think reading so many memoirs that I would burnout at some point BUT that is the beauty of a well written memoir, no two are the same. ⁣
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Brief summary:⁣
Ly Tran is just a toddler in 1993 when she and her family immigrate from a small town along the Mekong river in Vietnam to a two-bedroom railroad apartment in Queens. Ly’s father, a former lieutenant in the South Vietnamese army, spent nearly a decade as a POW, and their resettlement is made possible through a humanitarian program run by the US government.⁣
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The summary continues from there but like most books I don't like to read the entire summary as it gives too much away. Just trust me when I say if you like memoirs, you'll love this book.⁣

Thank you @netgalley for an eARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is one of those memoirs where you really feel for the author. The parents' refusal to let her get eyeglasses for decades was grotesque. The book did share the immigrant experience in a way that you don't often see in books taking place in the recent past--piecemeal garment work at home, the realities of running a cut rate nail salon but are obviously still occurring. I wish some adult had taken more of an interest in her earlier on.

Thank you to Scribner and NetGalley for the Reader's Copy!

Now available!

Powerful and moving, Ly Tran's "House of Sticks" is an ode to immigrant America. When Tran was only a few months old, her family moves to the United States, escaping the dire conditions in the refugee camps. However, life in the Bronx is not easy. Navigating poverty, language barriers and cultural barriers, Tran and her family struggle to make ends meet. Bit by bit, through hard work and sacrifices, they start to achieve their version of the American dream.

What I loved most about this story is Ly Tran's piercingly honest voice. She does not sugarcoat the bitterness of America, the hatred and xenophobia she and her family experienced and the intergenerational trauma from the Vietnam War. All the emotions and experiences felt vivid. Ly Tran's strength, resilience and faith is something everyone can draw from.

A memoir written beautifully - loved it - about an Asian immigrant and the experiences of her and her family assimilating and making a life in NYC. The author went to hard places - letting her readers feel the emotions and situations she faced - warts and all. What a gorgeous memoir. I’m so glad I read it. You should too. Heartfelt thanks to Scribner for the advanced copy of this incredible memoir. I’m grateful.

House of Sticks may bring to mind the Three Little Pigs fairytale, and in a way there is a resemblance. Ly Tran’s memoir starts with her earliest memories in Thai refuge camp. Eventually ending up in Queens New York, their homes seemed to be made of sticks as the family looked for a permanent home. At one time they lived in an unheated railroad apartment eating rice porridge and soy sauce. And here’s where the true meaning of “house of sticks” comes out. They were so malnourished they became stick figures. Like so many southeast Asian immigrants I’ve met the Buddhist tenants of courage and compassion helped Train survive and become an activist.

My apologies, I did not download this book in time before it was archived, and I have just noticed it has been placed in my Archived-Not Downloaded section.

Thank you NetGalley for an e-ARC of House of Sticks by Ly Tran.
Ly Tran's memoir is an eye-opening account of the difficulties of being a refugee and finding one's way in a new country. Her candid account of personal mental health issues give readers a window into the mind of someone struggling with depression. This book will hopefully make readers more empathetic towards the issues others may be dealing with.

Ly Tran was a toddler when her family emigrated from Vietnam to Ridgewood, Queens. Her father had been a member of the South Vietnamese army, then a POW for ten years. The family does piecework to make ends meet, and holds to their Buddhist faith. At the same time, Ly wants to fit in at school so badly. She is expected to have filial piety, and helps her family in all their endeavors, but has difficulty even seeing when her paranoid father feels that glasses are a conspiracy.

Reading this memoir brings back a lot of memories of New York City in the '90s when the Vietnamese diaspora began in earnest. There's a lot of familiarity with the locale, even though she lived in Brooklyn and I grew up in Queens, as well as the bullying, eagerness to fit in, and the difficulty balancing cultures. Even readers unfamiliar with Vietnamese culture can still appreciate the delicate dance that first-generation and refugee children face when trying to keep their home life and still integrate into larger American culture. Ly's father has PTSD from the horrors he saw and experienced while in the "reeducation" camps, which was expressed in various ways large and small throughout her life. The fatalistic isolation her mother experienced also comes across so that Ly felt alone at times even when surrounded by her family.

I feel just as proud of Ly as the people in her life. She'd gone through a lot, as had her family, and came out on the other side of depression, hospitalization, and moments of suicidal ideation. There are a lot of little traumas that she grew up with, and it helped her connect with others that need a sense of belonging and a wider network to succeed academically. House of Sticks is a book that really spoke to me, and kept me thinking about the moments in it long after I put it down. As far as I'm concerned, that's the best part of a memoir.

Book review: Moving memoir 'House of Sticks' explores family dynamics, burden of history
By ASHLEY RIGGLESON FOR THE FREE LANCE–STAR Jun 5, 2021
I have read several books by Vietnamese American writers, so I had some expectations going into Ly Tran’s début memoir, “House of Sticks.” I expected the reading experience to be challenging. I did not expect to come away feeling hopeful and inspired. But that is precisely what happened.

When the memoir opens, Tran is in a refugee camp in Thailand and about to come to America. Though the family has a sponsor in America, their living situation is quite difficult. Despite working long days sewing cummerbunds, Tran and her family live below the poverty line.

There are also some complex family dynamics at play, and Tran’s moving memoir explores, among other things, the burden of history.

Tran’s father, who fought for the South Vietnamese Army, spent almost a decade in prison. Years later, coping with severe PTSD, her father now suffers from inexplicable rages and night terrors. This living environment makes things very difficult for Tran. Though there is obviously a lot of love between her and her parents, Tran is, in some ways, neglected. Severely myopic, it soon becomes apparent that she needs glasses, but her father, fearing a government conspiracy, refuses to buy them for her. And Tran must learn to do without.

“House of Sticks” is oftentimes a difficult memoir to read, and there are trigger warnings for abuse, neglect, sexual harassment, self-harm, depression and institutionalization. Though Tran has faced many obstacles and clearly suffered tremendously, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that Tran found support at every turn. Without spoiling things too much, I would say that this is a special memoir in which, though circumstances are difficult, love wins out. What begins as a sad story morphs into a beautiful and inspirational text. It is said that we can only do our best with the cards we are dealt, and this sentiment seems to be especially true for Tran, who despite often feeling discouraged and unable to move forward, never gave up.

Instead, she wowed me at every turn, showing tremendous determination, intelligence and empathy.

Though there are no easy solutions to be had, “House of Sticks” made me feel as though anything is possible with a little courage.

This review was originally published in the Free Lance-Star in Fredericksburg, VA.

House of Sticks
By Ly Tran

House of Sticks is a timely and deeply moving memoir that resonated with me. This is an immigrant story that explores filial bonds, poverty, mental health, fitting in, in a heartbreaking and hopeful coming-of-age story.

Ly Tran's story on how her family started their life in Queens, NY from a small town in Vietnam, with a father who was a lieutenant and a POW, while also working alongside her mother as a manicurist at a nail salon in Brownsville, Brooklyn was so impactful as a child of immigrants myself. Tran's writing was beautiful, honest, and raw full of emotions. We all need to read this.

This memoir was such a magnificent read I highly recommend!

A debut memoir from Ly Tran, who immigrated to the US with her parents and three brothers from Vietnam, when she was just a small girl.

This is a heartbreaking story of the struggles Tran had from her parents basically running a sweatshop out of their small Brooklyn apartment just to make ends meat, to her struggles with education, some of that brought on by her parents never giving her glasses. She also recounts her long battle with depression and everything that she struggled with due to that diagnosis.

Ly Tran, completely gives us her on paper and does not leave anything out. I found myself rooting for her. While she struggled for many years, Ly finally pulls through, to give us this exceptional book. Once she was able to surround herself with positive people, you could see her personal growth skyrocket.

This was a riveting memoir, that will stay with me for quite awhile. This feels like the true American story, and I think we all will be a little bit better for reading this amazing story.

Thank you NetGalley and Scribner for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Review: House of Sticks
New memoir from Ly Tran stuns and awes

In 1993, at just three years old, Ly (pronounced ‘Lee’) Tran and her family emigrated from a small town in Vietnam to New York City to begin a new life, made possible through a humanitarian program run by the US government for prisoners of war. Her father, a former lieutenant in the South Vietnamese army, spent seven years in a POW camp barely surviving before escaping back to his hometown and eventually marrying Ly’s mother.

The family’s American dream did not turn out as planned, however. In this insightful and oftentimes heartbreaking new memoir, Ly Tran details growing up as an immigrant in late 90s and early 00s America, the struggle to assimilate to American culture while still honoring the cultural expectations of her parents, and the impact it had on both her wellbeing and mental health.

Tran’s account of life as an immigrant in America can be jarring, especially to those unfamiliar with the absolute poverty that many immigrants find themselves in when first arriving in America and sometimes for long after. An early scene in which a young Ly, not knowing better, plays with a cockroach – one of many that infest the family’s apartment – is unsettling, to say the least. For many, the squalor in which the family lives is unimaginable, but is a harsh reality for some families who have limited options.

Compared to war-torn Vietnam, though, this is a new beginning for the family, and they struggle to make it work. Starting with a pseudo-sweatshop in their own home making cummerbunds and ties to make ends meet, the family eventually buys their own nail salon, struggling to stay afloat. Ly struggles internally with her sense of duty to her parents, feeling as though she is betraying them when she goes to college and has to stop working with them at the salon.

One especially poignant moment where Ly’s internal struggle and sense of duty impacts her is in her need for glasses. Her father, believing that glasses are a government conspiracy, refuses to even discuss the possibility of her needing them, stating that she and her school are lying. Wanting to obey her father, Ly spends years with blurry eyesight, unable to see the blackboard in school and causing health issues, including headaches and bruising in and around her eye muscles. It is not until she attends college, living in a dorm, that she finally gets corrective lenses, all the while struggling with thoughts of betraying her father.

Throughout the book, Ly tells her coming-of-age story with such intensity and conviction that it is difficult to believe that she was one the very meek, voiceless child she describes, unable to articulate her feelings and understand them. Each chapter brings incredible insight into the immigrant experience, what it is like to learn an entirely new culture, and what it means to forge a path of one’s own.

Scribner // 384 pages // Memoir