Ru by Kim Thuy

Ru, a novel by Kim Thuy is the story of Vietnamese boat people thrust upon the foreign shores of Malaysia and then Canada all told through vignettes. Originally written in the French it was translated by Sheila Fischman. Winner of the Governor General’s Literary Award and a finalist for the Giller Prize it is no wonder this book has received so many accolades.

The reader learns the meaning of ru on the first pages of this novel:

“In French, ru means a small stream and, figuratively, a flow, a discharge – of tears, of blood, of money. In Vietnamese, ru means a lullaby, to lull.”

It’s as though these vignettes are memories told by the narrator in an attempt to purge themselves of their past and at the same time to soothe their wounds. Each chapter stands out on its own but is connected to the others as only memories can belong to one another. At times the story makes no sense but that is because the story of our lives are difficult to understand. And ru is the story of the immigrant, the refugee, the child with many histories.

 

“I was born in the shadow of skies adorned with fireworks, decorated with garlands of light, shot through with rockets and missiles. The purpose of my birth was to replace lives that had been lost. My life’s duty was to prolong that of my mother.”

The issue of identity is such an important theme in any immigrant tale but in Thuy’s book it takes on so many tones. The narrator’s relationship with their mother is only one such aspect that is so difficult to broach. Immigrant parents are often overbearing, set high standards and expect their children to lead successful western lives. But when you throw into the mix a longing for one’s past and an expectation that one’s children will honour that past it becomes a different type of identity split.

This is the type of book that makes its readers work for it. A short and simply written book it can be easily overlooked but the reader must recognize the beauty in this simplicity in order to appreciate the bigger story behind it. I encourage all readers to give this book a try.