The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen Review

 Lately, I have been trying very hard to read more graphic novels. This year for AAPI month we wanted to read a graphic novel that I've been waiting to get my hands on for some time. I happened to find one at my local library and was happy I found it.

The Magic Fish is a graphic novel by Trung Le Nguyen an illustrator and graphic artist from Minnesota. It is based on the real-life struggles he had as a queer child who lived with parents who didn't speak English. Like Tien in the story, there was a serious language barrier that prevented him from telling his parents he is gay. 

One thing we loved about this graphic novel was the way that it was told. Though there was a language barrier, they were able to communicate through stories. There were parts of the book told in flashbacks of his parents who escaped Vietnam during the war and also with Vietnamese versions of classic fairytales. Throughout the story, Trung writes about his obsession with fairytales and his relationships with his parents and his friends.

There are instances of religiously motivated homophobia. I also don't like the way the school handled the issue of his grief when a family member dies. His friends are amazing they both knew he was gay and it never really became a thing. One of our favorite scenes was the school dance, even though it eventually became an issue it was sweet and I think something Tien really needed at the moment.

The fairytales played a big part in the whole story. It showed how stories change with people, generations, and changes in location. The three stories that were told within the bigger story were Tattercoats, Cinderella, and The Little Mermaid. Honestly, all three stories are told way differently than the originals and they were actually more realistic in some ways. We were pleasantly surprised by the ending of this version of The Little Mermaid which helped him and his mother become closer.

I enjoyed the elements of the story that were just so tender and cute. The fairytales were great, we liked them better than the original. I really hope that the author continues with Tien's story. It would be good to read about how he approaches certain issues at school and home. I think that this might be one of my favorite graphic novels. We would like to read everything that Trung Le Nguyen writes in the future, this was great.