(picture from Nami Mun’s Facebook Group)
Yes, the Asian girl runaway who becomes a drug addict and streetwalker has been done before. Yes, there’s no way that this novel will become a rallying cause for Asian American activists–”Another story about an Asian woman selling and shooting up her body?”
But I also think that Miles from Nowhere is worth checking out. Nami Mun’s prose is amazing, and even if you’ve heard the story before, she renders the story very well. None of the major characters come out as stereotypes, and the retelling is raw and real. It’s a good read if only to experience the raw emotion. Also, for those interested in writers’ biographies, Nami Mun herself was an Avon saleswoman, an activities coordinator at a nursing home, a teenage runaway, and a dance hostess. I found some interesting audio interviews with Nami Mun here (see the right side bar).
Buy the book here.
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I also wanted more rice than what could fit inside the wrap....