Books, Fiction

A River of Stars by Vanessa Hua

Worth A Read Yes
Length 304
Quick Review A Chinese woman arrives in the U.S. to give birth to her baby, but due to circumstance stays to make her way in the face of adversity in Vanessa Hua’s A River of Stars.

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Reading A River of Stars by Vanessa Hua by the pool. | Dress

Reading books about immigration is important right now. It’s easy to talk about immigrants as a group or an other, but when you’re faced with stories of struggle, despair, children, and the humanity of it all, it’s hard to think of keep them separate from ourselves. The political climate in the U.S. is very …interested in immigration right now. We need these stories. Even though, A River of Stars by Vanessa Hua is a novel, it is very much grounded in reality for millions of men, women, and children living in fear and unknowns here in the U.S. and around the world.

Scarlett is a 37 year old Chinese woman who arrives in the United States to give birth to her bosses baby. She stays at a home for pregnant Chinese women, but it feels more like a prison filled with gossipy, rich ladies. Scarlett runs away with Daisy, a well-off, pregnant, teenage. They end up in San Francisco’s China Town scraping by, giving birth, and figuring it out, while the clock on their tourist visas keeps ticking away. They make friends and learn to lean on one another for help and companionship.

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A River of Stars by Vanessa Hua

There are four fundamental characters in A River of Stars: Scarlett, Daisy, Boss Yeung, and Mama Fang. Chapters randomly alternate perspective allowing each of these characters to tell their side of the story. It humanizes each of them, and shows their motivations, misunderstandings, feelings, and more. If the story had followed just Scarlett, it would have been vastly different. The immigrant story is not one sided but multifaceted and complicated. Everyone is searching for something, and at the core it is a search for identity and belonging. Hua also makes use of transliterations instead of using just English. The Chinese infusion is a lovely addition to the story because immigration stories usually include a language hurdle. Motherhood is an essential element to this story. Without it, the narrative kind of falls apart. Emigration is often heavily influenced by existing children or future children. Parents want the best for their kids. It’s a fairly fundamental emotion.

Vanessa Hua does a great job of creating an interesting story that is both fun to read and right on the nose for the political climate in her debut novel A River of Stars. It’s perfect for the upcoming summer months.  

Memorable Quotes
“Daisy didn’t realize that you might share the same bed, but dream different dreams.”
“She didn’t yet realize aunties specialize in contradictory advice.”

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Title: A River of Stars
Author: Vanessa Hua
Publisher: Ballantine Books (Random House)
Copyright: 2018
ISBN: 9780399178788

Books, Reading Lists, Travel Guides

Packing List

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A River of Stars | The Silence of the Girls | Brief Answers to the Big Questions  | Torch Song Trilogy | Age of Innocence | Him Her Him Again the End of Him | Miss D & Me | Well-Read Black Girl | Pajamas | Throw Blanket || Luggage

I packed a suitcase full of books for my trip this month. Alex, my frequent partner in crime, is deploying next month. Before he leaves, I flew to North Carolina on Saturday. We spent the night on base; then, we road tripped to his parents’ homes in Minnesota. A mere 19 hours in the car. We’re actually pretty used to it. We’ll be spending a week and a half together before I go home to Houston. We’ll see how many books I read in that time span. I am travelling prepared, though!

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Miss D & Me: Life with the Invincible Bette Davis
by Kathryn Seremak with Danelle Morton
I’m looking forward to this one because I am a huge Bette Davis fan, and I love her classic movies! Such a talent.

Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves
from Glory Edim
I follow @wellreadblackgirl on Instagram. Glory is beyond inspirational. When I learned of this book, I knew I NEEDED to read it! So it’s on the top of my list right now.

Brief Answers to the Big Questions
by Stephen Hawking
I feel like this speaks for itself. I’m always looking for books to challenge me. Stephen Hawking will for sure do that. I know very little about his realm of study.

Torch Song Trilogy: Plays
by Harvey Fierstein
I haven’t read a play in a long, long time, so I’m excited to dive in.

The Silence of the Girls
by Pat Barker
I haven’t read much historical fiction this year. I’m a tough critic, but I’ve heard a lot of good things about this one in particular.

Age of Innocence
by Edith Wharton
This is one of my favorite books. It’s been years since I have read it, and I want to revisit.

Him Her Him Again the End of Him
by Patricia Marx
I’m going to be completely honest… I bought this solely because the spine has houndstooth on it, and I have been obsessed with that pattern for ever.

A River of Stars
by Vanessa Hua
I don’t know much about this book, but I do love the cover a lot! It’s so bright!

Pajamas
from Target
I love pajamas, but I honestly don’t wear them that often. I mostly bum around in oversized t-shirts, which is totally fine when I’m at home or with Alex. But I’ll be spending time around his parents. I love these pajamas; they are literally the softest thing ever!

Brown Hat
from Amazon
I think everyone needs a good brown, felt hat for the fall season… especially up North!


Yellow Faux Mohair Plaid Throw
from Target
I bought this throw blanket on a whim. I’m so glad I did. It was so necessary on the plane!!! It fit perfectly in my bag, but it is also incredibly soft and warm. You need it! Ok, I “needed” it.

Samsonite 20” Centric Spinner
I bought new luggage for my trip because it had been a decade. I did a bunch of research, and I really like this set of luggage. This carry on is perfect and lightweight. It really only carried my books on this trip, though!

I’m off to bed! It’s been a long few days of travel, travel, travel! I need some sleep before I get to work again bright and early tomorrow morning, so I can have some fun in the afternoon!

Bisous!
RaeAnna

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Miss D & Me || Well-Read Black Girl || A River of Stars ||
Brief Answers to the Big Questions || Torch Song Trilogy || The Silence of the Girls ||
Age of Innocence || Him Her Him Again the End of Him

Books, Reading Lists

Up, Up, and Away Reads

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Getting ready for take off at Hobby Airport in Houston!

I wasn’t even in Houston for a full month, and I’m off again on another adventure. Alabama has been trying to kill me for a year every time I drove through it, so I decided to fly. Plus flying is faster and more convenient. I just can’t take my dog on the plane! So I’m a free mama this go around. Here are the books I’m going to try to read my way through over the next ten days. Wish me luck!

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From the Corner of the Oval by Beck Dorey Stein.

This pink cover says vacation reading. Click to buy!

 

 

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The Garden Party by Grace Dane Mazur

I hope my vacation is as relaxing as this cover. Click to buy!

 
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A River of Stars by Vanessa Hua

I’m kind of addicted to these pinks and blues! Click to buy!

 
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The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gowar

Highly talked about book, and it comes out on Sept. 11. Click to buy!

 
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The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein

I can’t wait to dig into this one! Click to buy!