If you think you’ve heard this one before, you haven’t, but you can be forgiven for the mistake: The Magic Fish is the kind of story that will repeatedly make you consider the familiar from a whole new perspective. He’s got a crush on one of his classmates, and he isn’t sure how to talk about that with either the object of his affection or his family. Editing assistance by Molly Higgins.Set in 1998, The Magic Fish is the story of Tién, a boy who always seems to have his face stuck in a book. The Magic Fish is a beautifully illustrated queer coming-of-age story, a welcome addition to any library shelf, and a useful recommendation for middle-grade readers and up. For a book that takes its time and occasionally doubles back, the end is abrupt, leaving the reader wishing for just a few more panels.įalling somewhere between The Prince and the Dressmaker and the more mature themes in the work of Tillie Walden (who blurbs the book). This ambiguity elevates The Magic Fish and provides the family mystery and dimension, the opposite of flat.

The magical merchant’s child is gender fluid–is Tiên non-binary as well? When Tiên’s secret creates a confrontation, Nguyen pulls the screen over the event, as if to create sacredness in a traumatic event. The young mermaid is exiled by choice, but Hiên fled Vietnam under threat. While this could be a lugubrious plot device, Nguyen does not draw many direct comparisons. In the afterword, the author explains that this book is a response to the fairytale quality of immigration narratives, The Magic Fish leans into this premise by telling more complex folktales, heavy with metaphor.

The distinctive rendering of the hair in the fairytale panels is reminiscent of manga and anime from the 70’s. Nguyen flaunts his skill with detailed close-ups, like a patchwork jacket that symbolizes the “make-it-work” lifestyle of an immigrant family. While the colors are contemporary pastel washes, with minimalist faces and barely-there backgrounds, the line work is bold. They come together in emotional moments like a pivotal phone call. Different colors denote a variety of time periods and realities.

For Hiên particularly, the books her son reads her trigger painful memories of Vietnam and prolonged separation from her own mother. These tales frame the story of Tiên and Hiên, on separate but connected journeys of identity. The more vivid half of the ensemble are the princesses, mermaids, and magical creatures of the fairytales they read together, a tradition started to improve their English. The other characters in their world are few, a loving but silent father and Tiên ’s middle school friends. The story follows Tiên and his mother, Hiên, as they bond over books while the son holds a secret and the mother processes her departure from Vietnam and subsequent years in the United States. Trung Le Nguyen’s debut graphic novel is a satisfyingly complex entry into the YA graphic novel space.

Trung le nguyen the magic fish