The Mountains Sing by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

What is it about?

The Mountains Sing is a multigenerational family saga set in war-torn Vietnam and told through the eyes of Hương and her grandmother, Trần Diệu Lan. Hương grows up in a country traumatized by the long war, and together with her grandmother, desperately waits for the return of those who have set out to fight: her parents, her uncles and aunties. As Trần Diệu Lan fights for survival - while at the same time trying to protect her grandchild as best as she can - she remembers her own story more than three decades ago, when she and her six children had to flee from her village to escape certain death.

Is it any good?

The Mountains Sing is a raw, honest and heart-wrenching tale that had me wipe away tears on almost every single page. And yet, it is a marvelous story, written in such an immersive and engaging way that it is impossible not to devour it.  

It’s a devastating account of a country gripped by political conflict and war as well as the lasting collective trauma. But it also speaks of the unbreakable bond that exists within close-knit families, it is a testament to resilience and survival, and to the joy one can find in seemingly ordinary and mundane things. “If I had a wish, I would want nothing fancy, just a normal day when all of us could be together as a family; a day where we could just cook, eat, talk, and laugh,” Hương remarks, and my heart ached at the humbleness and simplicity of her words.

Despite the dark premise, this is also a story about the liberating act of forgiveness and the unfailing power of love and hope – because at the end of the day, these are the two sentiments that keep us going, that fuel and nurture our will to carry on.

This is Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai’s first novel, but you can tell by her writing style that she is a published poet – to write a story that is so haunting and crashing in such a lyrical way is a rare gift (even though she has written poetry and short fiction in Vietnamese, while crafting this novel in English, which makes it even more impressive).

I loved how she effortlessly weaved Vietnamese sayings and proverbs effortlessly into the story. “Grandma had told me proverbs were the essence of our ancestors’ wisdom, passed orally from one generation to the next, even before our written language existed,” Hương says in the book, and the author’s own love for words and language shines through on every page.

Most memorable quotes?

“Human lives were short and fragile. Time and illnesses consumed us, like flames burning away these pieces of wood. But it didn’t matter how long or short we lived. It mattered more how much light we were able to shed on those we loved and how many people we touched with our compassion.”

“I realized that war was monstrous. If it didn’t kill those it touched, it took away a piece of their souls, so they could never be whole again.”

Conclusion?

More than three million people were killed in the Vietnam War, according to the official estimate released by Vietnam in 1995, and more than half of the dead were Vietnamese civilians – a number as harrowing as it is inconceivable.

By writing The Mountains sing, Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai has given the people of Vietnam – both the soldiers and the innocent bystanders, the casualties of war – unforgettable faces and strong voices; she has created an eternal literary memorial to her own family and the plights, the struggles and the incredible resilience of her fellow countrymen and women.

She paints a vivid and realistic picture of living, surviving and dying during wartime; she shows us that even when a war ends, it’s not over for those involved and affected, regardless which side they fought for. The scars will remain.

Trigger warning: PTSD, rape, death, torture, wartime violence, trauma

AT A GLANCE

Title: The Mountains Sing

By: Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

Published by: Oneworld Publications; MMP Edition (2021)

Pages: 352

Language: English