Deceit and Other Possibilities

Deceit and Other Possibilities

Vanessa Hua

Enjoyment: Quality: Characters: Plot:

In this powerful debut collection, Vanessa Hua gives voice to immigrant families navigating a new America. Tied to their ancestral and adopted homelands in ways unimaginable in generations past, these memorable characters straddle both worlds but belong to none. From a Hong Kong movie idol fleeing a sex scandal, to an obedient daughter turned Stanford imposter, to a Chinatown elder summoned to his village, to a Korean-American pastor with a secret agenda, the characters in these ten stories vividly illustrate the conflict between self and society, tradition and change. In “What We Have is What We Need,” winner of The Atlantic student fiction prize, a boy from Mexico reunites with his parents in San Francisco. When he suspects his mother has found love elsewhere, he fights to keep his family together. With insight and wit, she writes about what wounds us and what we must survive. Her searing stories explore the clash of cultures and the complex, always shifting allegiances that we carry in ourselves, our family, and our community. Deceit and Other Possibilities marks the emergence of a remarkable new writer.


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  • cathricc
    Dec 25, 2024
    Enjoyment: Quality: Characters: Plot:

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  • mseldritch
    Apr 06, 2025
    Enjoyment: Quality: Characters: Plot:

    This collection is so very good. While the book is slim, don’t let that fool you into thinking this is just a breezy collection you can just skim through. You can tell that each and every word, each detail was put in place by Hua for a reason. The stories are incredible, each lending their voice to human fallibility and desire interplaying with one another. An absolutely incredible read.

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