Things We Lost to the Water Summary
Eric Nguyen

Things We Lost to the Water Overview

In Eric Nguyen's novel Things We Lost to the Water, Hương, Tuấn, and Ben struggle to orient to life in New Orleans, after fleeing their home country during the Vietnam War. Hương longs for a reunion with her husband. Tuấn clings to his Vietnamese identity in order to understand himself. Ben tries to form a new version of himself uninhibited by his family's hurts. Over the course of the novel, the third person narrator shifts between each family member's perspective in order to excavate and explore their personal journeys towards self-discovery, and their collective family dynamics. The novel explores themes including, loss, family, and identity.