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on April 21, 2017
The explicit sexual content is the recounting of a gang rape; but it's really the violence of it that's explicit. Very few people could find it arousing, I hope. The other violence is in the service of the story, not there just to revel in. The book is a powerful evocation of what the Vietnam War felt like to to a Vietnamese "communist sympathizer." On the one hand, he was adjutant to the general in charge of the regime's secret police; and on the other, a spy for the commies. He was also blood brothers with two other young men; one his handler, and the other a sincere soldier for the regime; the latter never knew. He demonstrated willingness to risk his life for either of them. Also very strong was the depiction of the ignorance/arrogance of us Americans; but he doesn't really fault them for it either.
on April 20, 2017
Not sure I could say anything of merit that hasn’t already been said about this wonderfully written story. If you are an American, can remember the Việt Nam War, and are open to looking at a less than perfect America through the eyes of an insightful foreigner, then you should thoroughly enjoy reading this novel. It’s a very serious story, but with wonderful humor interlaced with the tales of political intrigue. The paradox of being a North Việt Nam sympathizer, sent to the United States after the Fall of Saigon to spy on the Vietnamese expats and gather intel in their intentions, but to then be subjected to re-education by your own countrymen after returning to the unified Việt Nam for the simple reason that you spent time in the United States and were thus influenced by the USA’s decadence, is a fate unexpected. Rather than being viewed as a hero, he is sent to a re-education camp where one man thinks it would be best to kill him. The hero eventually returns to the United States to seek freedom, but it is a bittersweet journey. I think he would’ve much preferred to have stayed in his own country, but it had turned into something he had not fought for.
I think the narration by Francois Chau is nothing short of outstanding. The perfect voice for this story.
I would encourage any lover of novels to read this one.
I think the narration by Francois Chau is nothing short of outstanding. The perfect voice for this story.
I would encourage any lover of novels to read this one.
on May 22, 2017
This is a long book, my interest in which waned many times because I simply could not follow the narrative. When there are no paragraphs or punctuation marks to separate speech from the text I get lost. Everything flows into itself and there is a lot to follow. Scenes are described graphically yet I found myself not being able to understand who was connected to who, how or why. It confusingly goes backwards and forwards in time too but what saves it for me was the delicious richness of the language. The author really does have a knack with words and it was that which I enjoyed the most. Grizzly in parts but you can't write any war book without, far less one about the conflicts in Viet Nam.
on April 24, 2017
This book is about the Viet Nam War from the perspective of a survivor who made it to US. It is really interesting and has many twists. The main character is a communist who is sent to spy on the South. He is told to escape with the group is he spying on and to continue to spy on them from the US. He returns (against his handler's orders) with the group and is captured as an enemy agent. The book is his confession to the commandant of the camp where he is jailed. His story makes the reader ask what he or she would do in a similar situation. One wonders about the morality of humans and how one would fit in. A very thought provoking and frightening book.
on April 21, 2017
The Sympathizer is a true example of stylistic and narrative excellence. It is reminiscent of nothing less than Crime and Punishment in terms of the author's exploration of the complex motives and actions of the main character and of the philosophies that influence him. In addition, this novel delves into the culture of the countries involved with such intelligence and clarity that the reader comes away with a deep understanding of the global interactions which motivated and still cloud the Vietnamese War .Yet the truths the author unveils extend well beyond any cultural or geographical boundaries. I have no doubt that this book will become a classic in the pantheon of world literature.
on July 16, 2017
This is a fictional book about a South Vietnamese army officer who escapes Saigon with his commanding general before the city falls to the North Vietnamese. The army officer and his general then have to assimilate into American society. People who had responsible positions in South Vietnam now struggle to survive in a culture and society that does not want to remember the war. As the general makes plans to send former soldiers back to fight the North Vietnamese, the army officer sends reports of these activities back to his handler in North Vietnam. The army officer is actually a spy for the North. When the Army officer returns with the small force to overthrow the NV government, he and his fellow fighters are captured and placed in a NV reeducation camp. Although the army officer was a NV spy, he needs to be reeducated. This is the part of the book that did not make any sense to me. I could not wait to finish the final chapters where the army officer is treated an an enemy of NV. What I got out of this book is that the South Vietnamese who fled their country, were the final victims of a horrible conflict.
on May 15, 2016
This book is about a Vietnamese man that lived through the Vietnam war and its aftermath. He wasn’t just any Vietnamese man, because he was half French and half Vietnamese. The main character’s origins set the base for the rest of the book, which talks about the contradictions of the period, and how arguments, but also people, have two sides. The protagonist was a Communist spy but also had a lot of sympathy for the West and the United States. He feels a strong attachment to his country, especially when abroad, but is also critical of his culture. He lives through episodes of extreme cruelty but also of love for his mother and loyalty to his friends.
It was not an easy war. It was not a simple war, and this book reflects how hard it was to deal with the ever present dualities.
Quoting from the book: “As Hegel said, tragedy was not the conflict between right and wrong but right and right, a dilemma none of us who wanted to participate in history could escape.”
"The Sympathizer" is no page turner, but given the depth of the topics, the book reads fairly well.
It was not an easy war. It was not a simple war, and this book reflects how hard it was to deal with the ever present dualities.
Quoting from the book: “As Hegel said, tragedy was not the conflict between right and wrong but right and right, a dilemma none of us who wanted to participate in history could escape.”
"The Sympathizer" is no page turner, but given the depth of the topics, the book reads fairly well.
on April 3, 2017
The Sympathizer is a powerful novel, taking as its subject the final days and aftermath of the Vietnam War as seen through the eyes of a North Vietnamese spy who is also the aide to a top ranking South Vietnamese general.
The mole (never named) was educated in the United States before returning to Vietnam and signing on as a Viet Cong spy. He accompanies the general to the United States after the fall of Saigon and continues his espionage work there. He ultimately returns to Vietnam in an ill-fated attempt to establish a counter-insurgency on behalf of the general.
I found the novel to be highly educational, as I’d never read such an account of the Vietnam War from the viewpoint of the Vietnamese. The refugee experience was largely unknown to me. While the final 50-100 pages are among the most powerful, containing acts of psychological and physical torture, they are presented in an almost stream of consciousness narrative which can become tiresome to wade through.
Certainly a worthy novel, however I can imagine that many might not enjoy it.
The mole (never named) was educated in the United States before returning to Vietnam and signing on as a Viet Cong spy. He accompanies the general to the United States after the fall of Saigon and continues his espionage work there. He ultimately returns to Vietnam in an ill-fated attempt to establish a counter-insurgency on behalf of the general.
I found the novel to be highly educational, as I’d never read such an account of the Vietnam War from the viewpoint of the Vietnamese. The refugee experience was largely unknown to me. While the final 50-100 pages are among the most powerful, containing acts of psychological and physical torture, they are presented in an almost stream of consciousness narrative which can become tiresome to wade through.
Certainly a worthy novel, however I can imagine that many might not enjoy it.
on May 3, 2017
I thought the book was interesting for the many ways the main character fits the description associated with the title. It was based in a historical setting that is close enough to the present to resonate effectively and spends perhaps a little too much time on description. There is no missing the "plight of the refugee" aspect of the story and relating it to events that are tied to the present day, but the more interesting conflict is the one between the narrator's history and it comprising the primary source of his difficulties. The distance between his nostalgia and beliefs and the realities of his experience create a tension that is described effectively and emotionally. The "lost between all worlds" nature of the first person account is an emotion that stays with the reader for a long time.
