Banyan Moon

Ann and Minh, her grandmother, had a special relationship, envied by her mother Huong who had grown distant from both of them.    When Minh passes away unexpectedly, Ann comes home to mourn and to regroup – Minh’s passing was only a small part of the worst night of Ann’s life which also included the revelations of her boyfriend’s infidelity and her impending motherhood.  Coming home turns into starting over when Ann and Huong are surprising left Minh’s house.  With years of bad blood between them and days of mourning ahead, Ann and Huong move in to The Banyan House.

Thao Thai’s debut novel Banyan Moon is a lesson in processing grief and moving forward one step at a time.  The novel is crafted as a trio of timelines following the three generations of women through their separate but similar stories of romance, motherhood, and loss.    Thai infuses the story with Vietnamese culture, opening the reader to folklore and past events that shaped the country and its people.  This book shows the power of family and friendship, and the importance of knowing when it’s time to move on.

I give Banyan Moon 5 out of 5 stars.  The only flaw I can manage to list here comes from the chapters written from Minh’s viewpoint: while it lists a year in the title, the story does not stay in that year but includes current day events as well.  I am impressed by the way the character development and scene details included in the book.  There is a fine line between overfilling a book with these details and leaving the readers wanting for more, and Thai walks that tightrope flawlessly.  I’m not usually one to enjoy mysticism and magic, but the way it is incorporated into the narrative is beautiful.

I recommend this book for all readers, but specifically for women and new mothers.  Motherhood brings many changes, but we don’t always recognize how it affects family relationships, too.  This would be a great book club read, or just a mother-daughter read.  With minimal references to sex and violence, this book would be best directed towards audiences over 13.

I chose Banyan Moon for the Booklist Queen Reading Challenge prompt “about complicated relationships”.  This definitely fits that bill!  This was also my Book of the Month selection in June.  The hype and awards for this book are well placed – it’s been featured in many publications and is the Read with Jenna pick and the Barnes and Noble Discover pick for July.  If you haven’t added this to your collection yet – you’re missing out!  Grab your copy today here!

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What I’m Reading

• Current print book: How We Work, Leah Weiss, PhD
• Current audio book: The Radium Girls, Kate Moore
• Book I’m most looking forward to: Patriot Games, Tom Clancy