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The Committed
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The Committed by Viet Thanh Nguyen Book Club
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👋 Hey everyone! Here are the details for this Sunday's book club meeting. Also, meet Khải Đơn, moderator for The Committed! 👋CLA Book Club: The Committed by Viet Thanh Nguyen
WHEN: Sunday, May 1, 2022
WHERE: Zoom at 4:00-5:00 PM PST
LINK: https://sjsu.zoom.us/j/83058360727?pw...
Meeting ID: 830 5836 0727
Passcode: 392351
CLA Book Club Moderator: Khải Đơn
Khải Đơn is a writer from the Mekong Delta, growing up in the kindness of the Mekong and its people. She is working on a poetry and nonfiction project on her exploited and impoverished hometown in the midst of ongoing and tumultuous climate change. Before joining SJSU, Khải Đơn mostly published in Vietnamese, and she worked as a journalist for the BBC Vietnamese Service.
Need a few questions to guide your reading of The Committed? We've got you covered!1. Discuss the relevance of the title, The Committed. Which characters in the novel show commitment? Consider whether Nguyen answers the question "committed to what?"
2. The narrator is prone to bouts of weeping and refers to himself as "we." Does this duality, and existential despair, make him an unreliable narrator? Why or why not?
3. How have the blood brothers evolved since the events of The Sympathizer? What still connects them as brothers, and what sets them apart? How would you characterize the friendship between the narrator and Man?
4. The Committed examines the rich complexities of friendship, loyalty, and betrayal. The novel asks the question, "How well do we know our friends?" What is the significance of that question?
5. Evaluate the ending of the book. Were you satisfied with what happened to the characters and how their stories ended? If you could change anything about the conclusion, what might you have done differently?
Have questions of your own? Share them with us!
The narrator in The Committed consciously struggles to live up to the standard of whiteness and at the same time defy it in his head. How do you see that play out in the book?
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In preparation for our meeting, we encourage you all to share any thoughts, questions, or comments you have regarding The Committed below. We are looking forward to discussing with you all!