First off, this cover? ‘‘Twas love at first site! This was such an interesting collections of short stories specifically about the Cambodian American experience following the Khmer Rouge genocide. It was a pleasure to watch the stories intertwine with one another and seeing glimpses of the same people through others eyes because it helped developer the characters in a way I didn’t expect when I first picked up this book. 

As with all short story collections, some were stronger than others. For me, the stand outs were Human Development, Somaly, and Generational Differences, and The Shop. Each story took showed it’s own point of view in examining familial relations and the tie to your culture, especially if it’s tied to a place you’ve never seen in person. I’m the first story, Three Women in Chucks, you start this conversation about what’s Khmer and what’s not, and it feels like throughout each of the stories, you’re getting glimpses into that same conversation in drastically different ways.

It’s unfortunate that this was published posthumously because I really enjoyed the writing and the open-endedness of So’s writing. It was truly a collection that had so much potential and I felt that if he had another collection released, it would have been worlds ahead of he had time to craft it. All in all, I appreciate him providing a glimpse into his culture, his psyche, and himself.