This was very entertaining and fun to read. It was a slice of life book written in first person present that takes place entirely within one day in a nail salon. There wasn’t really a plot, you just follow the salon owner in her day, her interactions with customers and employees, and her daydreaming about her past.

I have to confess I did not like Ning very much. I’m not sure if she’s intended to be a likeable character or not, but she reminded me a lot of my old dance teacher who I don’t think fondly of. Her hyper controlling of her employees (to the extent of cutting an employee’s hair herself before the employee was allowed to work) and condescending manner with customers was very off putting to me. It was interesting to see the way the customers treated her, and how she responded to that by being so awful to them when they couldn’t understand her. There was a very strong message of “us vs. them” and I wonder how much of that was truly due to racism and classism and how much of it was self imposed.

There were a few moments where Ning really shone as a character, like when she tried to save the pigeon, and when she helped the girl with a flat tire. I felt for her in her struggle with caring about her employees but not feeling like she was able to let them get close to her.

Overall, I felt like I was really living a day inside of Ning’s head, and it didn’t feel like somewhere I wanted to stay, but I felt like I understood her more as a person by the end of it, and I dislike her but I also have compassion for her. I appreciate the complexity. This book made me feel.

"Pick a Colour" by Souvankham Thammavongsa is coming this September from @littlebrown , thanks to them and @netgallery for the advanced copy! Also I love this cover. I really enjoyed "How To Pronounce Knife" her first collection of stories, winner of the 2020 Giller Prize and bought myself a copy after reading it from the library. Powerful stories about immigration that pack a punch. In this, her new novel, Thammavongsa tackles one long day at a nail salon, through the salon owner's eyes. As her and her "girls" go about their days, nicknaming their clients who barely see them, as they scrub at their feet, gossiping in their language, all responding to "Susan", we silently observe, uncomfortable in the shadows. I found this book incredibly moving and sharp and observant and serious and sometimes even funny. Our narrator looks back at her life with a distance and acceptance rarely seen. The sparseness speaks for itself. A haunting read about the people we might try not to see, who we might try not to notice, but who are certainly there. And they see everything. For all of us in Canada, who have visited a nail salon somewhere, this is a very good read from a different perspective. #pickacolour #canlit #alwaysreading #advancedcopy #nailcare #nailsalon

This novella takes place in a nail salon owned by Ning who is a retired boxer. All her employees wear name tags that say Susan and have the same outfit and haircut.

I found the writing to be very immersive because of all the rich sensory details. While it is a good exploration of a character who exists in this half invisible service role, I felt a bit let down by the lack of direction, I kept waiting for this to go somewhere and it never really did.

I had a hard time getting into this one. The writing style was long winded. I don't know if an omniscient the point of view is my favorite. The subject is creative, but I wish it had been written differently.

So much to say and like about this book. Told over a single day, Ning who is a retired boxer is a nail technician and owns a nail salon. All the nail technicians go by "Susan" since they are just another face. As the story unfolds we get to know Ning who is so much more than a "Susan". This book delves into race and class in a different way. I enjoyed this book and look forward to more books by the author.

At first glance, Ning—known to her clients simply as “Susan”—appears to be just another face at a nail salon. But as the narrative peels back the layers of her daily routine, we are drawn into a profound, intimate exploration of a woman who refuses to be defined by others' assumptions. Once a formidable boxer, now wielding cuticle scissors instead of gloves, Ning is a character of immense depth and quiet fire.

The novel unfolds over a single summer day, but within that compressed timeline, it reveals entire lifetimes. The rhythm of the salon—the endless cycle of beauty rituals, the coded conversations among the other “Susans,” and the whispered confessions of their wealthy clientele—becomes a kind of choreography. Ning moves through it with precision, grace, and growing tension, her internal monologue rich with insight and contradiction.

What’s most striking is how the story interrogates class, race, and gender without ever feeling didactic. Instead, it lets the reader inhabit Ning’s duality: the artist and the fighter, the invisible worker and the observer who sees everything. The writing is elegant and controlled, simmering with restrained emotion and sudden moments of brutal clarity.

This book is not loud—it doesn’t need to be. It invites the reader to listen closely, look again, and consider the lives we pass by without seeing. It’s a quietly radical, beautifully written portrait of a woman who has long been underestimated and is finally ready to reclaim her voice.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Seeing nail tech in such a poetic and creatively written way—I love it. There’s so much to learn, even from the tiniest details of the process. I can’t wait to finish this book!

Witty and so clever. I really enjoyed this read. Well written, which feels like a breath of fresh air. Overal this book felt very fresh and original which is rare. Highly recommend to anyone else who's interested is piqued by the description. I'm excited to see what else this author does in the future and want to go back and read her published poetry.

I WANT MORE. this book left me wanting 200 more pages, I got so lost in the day. Who knew a little cast of characters at a nail salon could be so captivating. Our main character is such an enigma, I really wanted to continue diving into that. This story leaves you with so many questions but I kind of love it for that. We just get a small glimpse, a peek through the nail salon window. I keep finding myself creating backstories and storylines for the characters out of thin air now that it’s over. I laughed, I was uncomfortable, I was sad, I was comfortable. This is a gem.

Reading this was like having insight into the world of the women who have given me pedicures in the past. I learned so much and it was eye-opening to read this story. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. It's fantastically written and will draw you in from the first couple of pages.

This crisp, sharp one-day story offers a powerful snapshot of a woman who is overlooked yet unforgettable.

Ning is a retired boxer, her past fights still alive in her mind. But now, she is simply a nail salon owner, running a no-frills, fast-paced shop where every worker is named Susan and trained to ask clients about their personal lives—while revealing little about their own.

As Ning moves through her day, her two identities collide—fighter and caretaker, past and present. What does it mean to serve, to endure, to be seen?

A sharp, insightful take on the immigrant experience, Pick a Color captures the grit, humor, and quiet battles of everyday life in a brilliantly compact, unforgettable read.

#SouvankhamThammavongsa #LittleBrownAndCompany #PickAColor #NailSalonStories