Please see the link below/attached for my review of The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen.

https://wordsofmysteryblog.wordpress.com/2021/02/11/book-review-the-magic-fish-by-trung-le-nguyen/

Stunning and absolutely gorgeous. This graphic novel was a joy to read. It does a great job of alternating between the real world and the fairy tales that Tien and his mom read. The color palette was simple yet extremely effective and really set the tone for the stories as well. I loved it.

I absolutely loved this. Between the stunning art and the feel good story this was a perfect read. The only thing I question is the title. Although The Magic Fish is mentioned it's not the only story told and I think it could have had a title that more closely matched the story as a whole.

Tien has been hiding that fact that he's gay from his mother and father. Struggling for the word in Vietnamese to tell them and struggling with revealing something not knowing how they will react. His mother and him bond over stories, specifically Fairy Tales. Throughout the narrative three Fairy Tales are told. Two seemingly Cinderella stories and a Little Mermaid tale. These are all beautifully illustrated and work seamlessly in the story itself. With alternating panels of Tien's life at school and his relationship with his mother we see a story that deals with so many difficult topics in a way that isn't too heavy or upsetting.

Wow. Just, wow. This is such a gorgeous book! Full of layers, full of feels. There's a lot going on, but it all blends seamlessly. The first layer of story is set in the late '90s United States, and follows our main character, Tiến, a 13 year old boy. Tiến is the son of Vietnamese immigrants; they understand English better than they speak it, and speak Vietnamese at home, while Tiến speaks English and understands Vietnamese. He has two best friends, Julian and Claire, and he has a secret- he has a crush on Julian. He's told Claire his secret, but he doesn't know how to tell his parents; he asked a librarian for help, but they couldn't find a word or term for "gay" in Vietnamese. Then we have a layer for Tiến's home life, where he reads the fairy tales he and his mother love aloud while she does seamstress work at home. We get to read along with the fairy tales as well, stories within the story. The first is Allerleirauh, a German version of Cinderella, known as Donkeyskin or Tattercoats in English. This leads us to a third layer, his mother's memories of her and her new husband's journey from post-war Vietnam to the U.S., and the sacrifices they made to do so. When she has to return to Vietnam suddenly, we hear the second fairy tale from her aunt, Tấm Cám, a Vietnamese version of Cinderella. While she's gone, things happen that I'm not going into, because I don't want to spoil anything, and after she comes back, we get our third fairy tale, an altered version of The Little Mermaid she reads to Tiến, to help her express her feelings. And the feels, y'all! Omg, all the feels, they're everywhere! If I had stopped here, it would have been a wonderful story. But then I read the author/illustrator's note at the end, about immigrant stories, how immigrants are fit into stories in the minds of people, and become characters and tropes. Oh, hi, there's more feels exploding in my heart! Then there's an afterword on the fairy tales- the similarities between stories of different cultures, how he chose how to illustrate each story from the point of view of the person telling it, all the details that went into each story. The stories all have a theme of someone going from one world to another, the struggle to fit into this new world, the feeling of being stuck between the world one came from and the world one is in now, and how one finds one's place. There is more in these after notes too, enough information to consider that I read the story again, and it gained new depth and context. This was all masterfully done, and that was a big wow moment by itself. Add in that beautiful, evocative art, and mind = blown. The rendering of the art is so gorgeous, simple at times, lush and lavish at others. The illustrations are done in black and white, and then washed in colors that denote what we're seeing- the present is shown in tones of red, memories are golden, the fairy tales in shades of purple, allowing the reader to move effortlessly from one perspective to the next. It's all just so perfect together! I've never seen story and art blend so well. Without a doubt, one of the best graphic novels out there.

#TheMagicFish #NetGalley

Using the scaffolding of fairy tales, Nguyen creates a beautiful story that focuses on a Vietnamese mother and her American son. Absolutely exquisite storytelling, and a beautiful, quiet gem of a graphic novel.

What a magical story. I truly learned so much about language use and how meanings vary between words. I loved the flawless transitions between present day and fairytales. The elements of Vietnamese culture and experience were eye-opening and incredibly important. I loved this a lot and will read anything that this author writes.

Loved the art, the color schemes, everything. I do think I need a second reading to absorb it more, which is a slight detraction for me -- maybe less vividly interesting for teens than others.

I rather adore this book. There isn't much action and the plot is fairly straightforward. The real beauty is in the reading of fairy tales.We have these largely familiar stories told in a less familiar way. The messaging is more subtle than in the Disney versions,. We're seeing communication between mother and son almost entirely through story. And the artwork is absolutely gorgeous. A great book to read, reread, and discuss.

This book was absolutely magical. The art was unlike anything I've seen, and I've read a LOT of graphic novels. The story was beautiful but the fairy tales inside the story were absolutely breathtaking. I can't wait to see what comes next from Trungles!

The artwork was so beautiful! I loved the way the characters used stories to communicate. Definitely a favorite of the books I read this year.

The Magic Fish is up there with all time favorite graphic novels Nimona and The Prince and the Dressmaker for me. It is a beautiful coming out story that I think everyone needs to read.

Tiến and his mother bond over fairy tales. They read them together as a way to escape life's hardships. He also uses them to teach her English, since he is the child of Vietnamese immigrants. Tiến needs to share his secret with his mother--that he is gay. Using the layers of fairy tales on top of the main story line, the author allows the reader to become swept up in the lives of these characters. My heart broke and was pieced together during the course of the novel and I wanted to give Tiến a big hug by the end. A gorgeous story of acceptance, love, fairy tales, and family. I wholeheartedly recommend for teens and their parents. I loved this book.

this was such a beautiful little graphic novel full to the brim with gorgeous illustrations and such a beautiful story of acceptance and even when your going through a rough time in life their is always a place to call home In anything, that could be fairytales , friends, anything!!

this tackles tough subjects but matters that need to be spoken about from such a young age

I loved the LGBTQ representation in this book and how it paired the fairy tales with the boy trying to come out with his mother.

Read more graphic novel reviews at www.graphiclibrary.org.

Thirteen-year-old Tién reads fairy tales to his mother, Helen, to help her practice her English as she works as a seamstress. Woven through the fairy tales are memories Helen has of immigrating with her husband. The fairy tales are variations on the story of Cinderella. The first is about a maiden named Alera who is promised to the Old Man in the Sea to repay her father’s debts. She demands three impossibly beautiful dresses as payment, then escapes his clutches after receiving them. She wakes up on a distant shore and finds a new family in the kitchens of a palace. The kind prince has a ball for his birthday, and Alera wears one of her beautiful dresses. Of course, she catches the eye of the prince.

In between reading stories Tién attends school and tries to navigate his crush on one of his best friends, Julian. His other best friend, Claire, encourages Tién to tell Julian and his family that he is gay, but Tién can’t find the words to express it in Vietnamese in order to tell his parents. Outside pressures make Tién feel ashamed of his feelings, so will he ever find the courage to tell his mother?

Tién and his mother have a beautiful relationship despite the language barrier. As the author notes at the end, this story strives to show the complexity of the immigrant story, especially the difficulties parents and children experience when they are from different parts of the globe. The weaving of fairy tales, flashback, and present-day story is artfully done. The Magic Fish would make a great read-along with American Born Chinese in that both use fables and fairy tales interwoven with real life to express the nuances of being American and having immigrant parents.

Nguyen uses three different color palettes to express to the reader where they are. Purple is inside a fable, yellow is the memories of Tién’s mother, and red is the present day. Additionally, Nguyen’s illustrations are beautiful. Each of Alera’s three dresses are unique and incredibly detailed.

This is a beautiful story that's sure to be on the top of many awards lists this season.

Sara's Rating: 10/10
Suitability Level: Grades 7-12

I loved this story. The overlap of the fairytales with the family's own Vietnamese culture, heritage, and experiences was truly though provoking and eye opening. The story follows Tiến , a young Vietnamese-American boy who loves both his family and his friends.

His mother and father struggle to make ends meet as they work to save up money to visit family back home in Vietnam. Tiến and his mother read fairytales together from the library as a way for his mother to learn more english and as a way to spend time together while she works as a seamstress. But as they work on language together, Tiến struggles to find a way to express himself to his family.

He is gay, but there isn't really a word for that in his parents' own language. As he struggles to find the right words to communicate this important part of himself, tragedy unexpectedly strikes his family and his mother goes off to Vietnam before Tiến can figure out what to say to her. He knows his family loves him, but like all children he fears dissapointing them. His mother returns and so too do the fairytales.

Will Tiến find the words he needs to explain to his family who he is? Or will things continue on as they are?

10/10 would highly recommend picking up a copy!

Trung Le Nguyen intertwines three stories together in an incredible way in this graphic novel. The first follows Tiến, who is struggling to tell his Vietnamese parents that he’s gay. Next is the fairytale that Tiến and his mother are reading together, and finally the book looks to Tiến’s mom and explores her journey from Vietnam to America. Between heartfelt and engrossing storytelling and absolutely stunning artwork, this beautiful book wholly charmed me. Nguyen ties together themes in all three of his plotlines that build to a conclusion that brought me to tears. It’s a moving story about family, finding yourself, and being true to who you are. Plus there is beautiful fashion artwork in the fairytale sections that I still can’t get out of my head. This book is just so, so beautiful and if you’re looking to pick up something magical this season, I highly recommend The Magic Fish.

This book was wonderful. The story was captivating, and the way it was illustrated, only made it more vivid in my mind. I can highly recommend this wonderful graphic novel!

This was a beautiful and at times heartbreaking story. I loved how the different fairy tales interwove with the stories of the characters in both the past and the present. The author's notes at the end were especially great; he compared the combined and multiple languages of his childhood (Vietnamese and English) with the combined languages of the graphic novel genre (words and images). He talked about how the two-dimensional, trope-based style of fairy tales reminded him of how the stories of immigrants were told, and this graphic novel did a brilliant job of showing the complexities of fairy tales, which change over time, between cultures, and in retelling, as well as the stories of immigration and life beyond immigration.

This book is incredibly beautiful, and I'm not just talking about the art. The story itself is incredibly interwoven. Tien, a 13 year old boy spends a lot of time with his mother who speaks Vietnamese as a first language and still struggles with English. They spend their time reading to each other. The story weaves in three fairy tales between the story of Tien going to a dance with his friends and his mother going home to her mother's funeral. You can tell the bond between mother and son is strong and that they want the best for each other. Tien is worried about coming out to his family because he doesn't know the words in Vietnamese. In the end the final fairy tale brings them together and almost made me cry. What a wonderful story Nguyen was able to tell.

I was really hoping to enjoy this. However it just didn't hold my interest. It was also just confusing and felt almost disconnected when it came to going back and fourth from fairytale story to his actual life. The illustrations in the fairy tales were beautiful.