The House on Dream Street: Memoir of an American Woman in Vietnam (Adventura Books)
In this heartfelt memoir, Dana Sachs takes the reader on a sensual and textured voyage to a country most Americans think about only in terms of war. A finalist for the Independent Publisher Book Award, this deftly written narrative reveals how Sachs settled in with slick, warmhearted Tung and his quietly tenacious wife Huong in Hanoi and made a place for herself in “enemy” territory. With vivid descriptions of the community—the noodle stalls and roaring motorcycles, the vestiges of French colonialism, and the encroachment of glittering high-rises—Sachs explores the tenuous balance between the traditions of old Vietnam and a country in the throes of modernization. Sachs’s honest depiction of her difficulties renders her triumphs and love for the country and its people all the more poignant and compelling. This edition includes a new afterword by the author.Part memoir and part travelogue, The House on Dream Street offers a compelling glimpse into Vietnam more than 20 years after the war. Author Dana Sachs foregoes the history lesson and instead takes us into the day-to-day lives of working-class people attempting to succeed in a fledgling capitalist economy. Captivated by the once-forbidden country during a visit in 1989, Sachs returned two years later, took a room with a young family, and set out to immerse herself in the culture.
One of the most charming aspects of the book is that Sachs lacks the bravado you’d expect from a solo traveler. Her slow grasp of the language causes no end of frustration, and her Western looks–”bigger, paler, and richer”–make her an object of unwanted attention. Other facets of crowded Hanoi prove equally challenging: maneuvering a bicycle through dangerously narrow streets, fending off the frequent advances of married Vietnamese men, and coping with the complete lack of privacy as well as the elusive Vietnamese concept of destiny. Despite the often-primitive conditions, the watchful eyes of the secret police, and the intolerable, mildewy weather, Sachs manages to portray her newfound home as an explosion of sensory experience, where “the rich, woody scent of freshly steamed rice” fills the air and “commuters whizzed past… their bright clothes trailing pink, orange, purple, and green across the blue-black asphalt of the road.” And then there are the people: Tung, her friendly but on-the-make landlord who loves heavy metal; Huong, his critical but loyal wife who harbors untold hidden strengths; Tra, desperate to return to the States and get her doctorate, even at the expense of her marriage; and Linh, also yearning to escape her husband’s tight reins. In fact, most of the women with whom Sachs bonds are torn between their family obligations and a dawning realization of their own rights.
Even as her friends struggle to balance personal goals with marital happiness, Sachs finds herself drawn to Phai, a quiet, inexperienced motorcycle mechanic. Their love affair, illegal and unspoken, flames steadily and then flickers out, as the author finds herself unable to overcome their differences and the prospect of marrying into Phai’s impoverished family. In the end, she realizes her love for Phai is only a personification of her romance with the country itself–but it’s as a chronicle of that romance that The House on Dream Street truly succeeds. In telling the story of her own discovery and growth, Sachs provides a distinctively personal view of a rapidly evolving country as well as the families who are weathering the transition. –Lisa Costantino
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Review by Allison Martin for The House on Dream Street: Memoir of an American Woman in Vietnam (Adventura Books)
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The House on Dream Street is the story of Dana Sach’s sojourn in Vietnam; as she explores day to day life in Hanoi. As she becomes intimately involved in the activities and lives of her circle of acquaintances – her landlords and their extended families, neighbors and the street cafes on Dream Street (where she lives), and ultimately her lover, she beings to see beneath the surface and to discover Vietnam as it is, rather than as she expected.Readers will enjoy this personal account of life in Vietnam. She has a gift for recounting each conversation verbatim, so that the account of her time flows swiftly as you read. Interspersed with the dialogue are her thoughtful comments on Vietnamese life and her personal reactions to events.
Review by TG Smith for The House on Dream Street: Memoir of an American Woman in Vietnam (Adventura Books)
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This book is fun and well-written. The author is personally engaging and self-effacing. But the book is not so much about Vietnam as it is about the author herself. She discusses her reactions to the people and the people?s reactions to her. The Vietnamese in the story just play a supporting role, allowing her to display her growth and her misplaced sense of guilt she shoulders on behalf of her own country. This is not to say that there aren?t some interesting observations made about Vietnam. But they are few. If you are interested in learning about one individual?s growth and experience through immersion in a foreign culture, this would be an excellent book for you. But I would not recommend this book as a vehicle for learning about modern Vietnam. (Look instead to Sacred Willow, Shadows and Wind or Understanding Vietnam).
Review by TG Smith for The House on Dream Street: Memoir of an American Woman in Vietnam (Adventura Books)
Rating:
This book is fun and well-written. The author is personally engaging and self-effacing. But the book is not so much about Vietnam as it is about the author herself. She discusses her reactions to the people and the people?s reactions to her. The Vietnamese in the story just play a supporting role, allowing her to display her growth and her misplaced sense of guilt she shoulders on behalf of her own country. This is not to say that there aren?t some interesting observations made about Vietnam. But they are few. If you are interested in learning about one individual?s growth and experience through immersion in a foreign culture, this would be an excellent book for you. But I would not recommend this book as a vehicle for learning about modern Vietnam. (Look instead to Sacred Willow, Shadows and Wind or Understanding Vietnam).
Review by for The House on Dream Street: Memoir of an American Woman in Vietnam (Adventura Books)
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I was 11 when I went to Vietnam in 1999 with my family. We lived in Nha Trang, so life was different than where “Duyen” was, but I recognized a lot of similarities between the culture in Hanoi and southern beach city Nha Trang. I enjoyed her portrayal of the people and the land. It makes me wish I had gotten more out of my experience there. Well, if you want to just read a good book (maybe late teens on up, some was a bit “old” for me) try this one out. I thought it was great, and really captured the spirit of Vietnam and its people.
Review by Janet Baker-carr for The House on Dream Street: Memoir of an American Woman in Vietnam (Adventura Books)
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It has been a long time since I picked up a book and could not put it down, except to eat and sleep, until it was finished. This is a beautifully written courageous memoir,and the story is totally fascinating. The author immerses herself in the life of Vietnam in ways she might not have planned and finds that in profound ways Vietnam enters and remains in her life. This is a remarkable and illuminating book.