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Wandering Souls
- Narrated by: Aoife Hinds, Ioanna Kimbook, Ainsleigh Barber
- Length: 5 hrs and 13 mins
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Wandering Souls
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Summary
LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION
An extraordinary story of the journey of one young family through love, loss and unwavering hope.
There are the goodbyes and then the fishing out of the bodies – everything in between is speculation.
One night, not long after the last American troops leave Vietnam, siblings Anh, Thanh and Minh flee their village and embark on a perilous boat journey to Hong Kong. Their parents and four younger siblings make the crossing in another vessel but as weeks go by it becomes clear that only one party has survived the voyage.
Anh, Thanh and Minh suddenly find themselves alone in the world, without family or home. They travel on, navigating refugee camps and resettlement centres until, by a twist of fate, they arrive in Thatcher’s Britain. Here they must somehow build new lives with only each other to turn to, but will that be enough in a place that doesn’t seem to want them?
In this piercing debut, the siblings’ faltering journey is deftly interwoven with the voice of their lost younger brother, Dao, following them from a place between the living and the dead, and the records of an unknown researcher intent on gathering the strands of their story. Wandering Souls paints a heart-wrenching portrait of a family in crisis while exploring the healing power of stories.
A most anticipated book of 2023 in Vogue, AnOther Magazine, i-D, Independent, Evening Standard and Huffington Post
Critic reviews
"A debut in name only, Wandering Souls is an astute and sure-footed excavation of family, selfhood, and loss in the shadow of colonial violence. It is also a deeply humane and genre-defying work of love and uncompromising hope through a long-overdue portrayal of Vietnamese life in the UK. A mighty achievement." (Ocean Vuong, author of On Earth, We're Briefly Gorgeous)
"A heartbreaking novel about Vietnamese siblings who arrive as refugees to Thatcher’s Britain. Chronicling the family’s life right up until the present day, it’s a deeply affecting reckoning with history." (i-D Magazine)
"Meticulously researched and beautifully imagined, Wandering Souls is a deeply affecting debut, a restless inquiry into the nature of loss, kinship and survival." (Tash Aw, author of We, the Survivors)
What listeners say about Wandering Souls
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- John
- 14-05-23
A window to another existence
Being a lucky westerner with no traumatic displacement in my life, this book provides a beautifully rendered window through which to see and vicariously experience the very different lives of others. I very much enjoyed it.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Sigrin
- 04-06-24
Sad sorrowful tale
A very interesting account of the Vietnamese boat people from one of the survivors.
So very sad, but good to understand what these people went through. My only gripe was the voice of the ghost, which really set my teeth on edge.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 27-03-23
Emotional and insightful
Beautifully written from a few perspectives that could be confusing but works. Packed with information, insight and emotion.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 29-05-23
Very moving
Well written, inspiring and intriguing story. Would definitely recommend listening to.
Read at a good pace
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- pamelala
- 09-03-24
Deep and meaningful
This is my only my 2nd audiobook as I have had trouble concentrating on them before so I gave up. I figured I would try again. I absolutely loved this book. It has a deep soulful vibe and it was very interesting to hear about the lives of the ‘boat people’ - we really are all connected. All we want as people is connection and hope and love and this book brought it 💓🩵💖
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Ms. R. M. Bennett
- 14-06-23
Moving
Great book. Very moving.
Well written. Not a total happy ending…
Short book - Would have appreciated more details around what caused the massive numbers of exits from Vietnam due to asylum .
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Kym Levy
- 01-06-24
Sometimes confusing but still worth listening to
I enjoyed this book and the way most of it was written, there were a couple of parts that I got lost in, the moving around of people’s stories could have been either left out or added in a different way, maybe reading this as a book rather than listening to it would make these parts sit better. I did like the way the writer would come in a tell a bit about her experience in writing the book at times to give a little depth and share truths around the story. It made me want to learn more about what happened in Vietnam in the 70s. Sometimes there were big gaps of time between the story that perhaps could have been told but I also liked that this was left to my imagination as some books can go into too much detail. Overall, it’s a story of survival and hope.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 04-10-23
Heartwrenchingly honest, beautiful
At times painful to listen to, immaculately researched, graceful. Occasional asides from the author add depth and candour to the story. A must-listen.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr Asa Haycock
- 04-02-24
A moving story of determination
Loved this story, having been to Vietnam and seen first hand the suffering that these people went through, this story is beautifully written, very moving and clearly someone’s life - which makes it all the more poignant! An excellent listen and very well delivered!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 05-03-24
Breathtaking!
A beautiful story, sensitively performed. I hope Ms Pin is busy penning her next one!
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