The Magic Fish
Books | Young Adult Fiction / Comics & Graphic Novels / LGBTQ
4.4
(746)
Trung Le Nguyen
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by New York Public Library • Kirkus Reviews • Booklist • Publishers Weekly In this gorgeous debut graphic novel, fairy tales are the only way one boy can communicate with his Vietnamese immigrant parents. But how will he find the words to tell them that he’s gay? A powerful read about family, identity and the enduring magic of stories. “One of the most astounding graphic novels of the year" –Entertainment Weekly Tien and his mother may come from different cultures—she’s an immigrant from Vietnam still struggling with English; he’s been raised in America—but through the fairy tales he checks out from the local library, those differences are erased. But as much as Tien’s mother’s English continues to improve as he reads her tales of love, loss, and travel across distant shores, there’s one conversation that still eludes him—how to come out to her and his father. Is there even a way to explain what he’s going through in Vietnamese? And without a way to reveal his hidden self, how will his parents ever accept him? This beautifully illustrated graphic novel speaks to the complexity of family and how stories can bring us together even when we don’t know the words. “A lyrical masterpiece.” –BuzzFeed
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More Details:
Author
Trung Le Nguyen
Pages
256
Publisher
Random House Children's Books
Published Date
2020-10-13
ISBN
1984851594 9781984851598
Community ReviewsSee all
"beautiful. the art is so detailed and beautiful. it's so well made. the characters are endearing, though it can be hard to keep track of the side story characters. the plot was pretty well paced and the side stories correlate to the main story quite seamlessly. i also enjoyed the shift in colors when talking about different stories, red for main story, orange for past, and purple for fairytales. "
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haven
"Awwwww :') This book was just *chefs kiss* Amazing, heartwarming, and the intertwining of the main story and the fairy tales was spectacular "
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Maria O
"This was such a beautiful book weaving together fairytales, a coming out story, and a story of refugees. The author was authentic and emotional in every part of the book, and the color choices throughout enhanced the artwork. 5 ⭐️’s!"
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Madeline
"The art style is so comforting and beautiful. I couldn’t put it down. I love the cultural aspects and how the story wasn’t only about a kid struggling to come out to his mom. It truly warmed my heart."
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m lemon
"Beautiful illustrations align with a beautiful story speaking to #immigration and the feeling of being between cultures as well as coming to terms with being #queer and the uncertainty around #comingout . I’d recommend this for adolescents and adults. #queerrepresentation #gay #queerstories #immigrants #fairytales #graphicnovels #vietnamese "
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Nora Fritsch
"The book is very good, there are different types of timelines that happen, the past showing the parents before the had their son, three different fairytales that are related to both past and the present of the book, and the son finding his way through his sexuality and family matters. "
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Hannah Quintanilla
"I really enjoyed the narrative structure--showing both the mom's past in Vietnam, the "present" of 90's America and then the fairy-tales. The artwork is beautiful and captures the moments and emotions so well. I feel I am missing something in the "Tam Cam" telling--I didn't understand it's connection to the real-life plot, the way I could with "Tattercoats" and "The Little Mermaid." Love the ending, showing how we can choose our stories and how to tell them."
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Liesl Prentice
"The art style in this is gorgeous and I loved the way the fairy tales were integrated into the story <br/>also the use of the colors showing the different times/ locations vs fantasy stuff was so cool <br/><br/>CWs: murder, outing, death, blood, homophobia"
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Erin 💫
"so beautiful one of my favorite graphic novels ever"
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jess (she/her)
"Definitely my new comfort read"
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Josh Brown