Fiction

The Committed

The Committed

  • Downloads：5500
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-05-30 11:51:10
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Viet Thanh Nguyen
  • ISBN：0802157068
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

The long-awaited new novel from one of America’s most highly regarded contemporary writers， The Committed follows the Sympathizer as he arrives in Paris as a refugee。 There he and his blood brother Bon try to escape their pasts and prepare for their futures by turning their hands to capitalism in one of its purest forms: drug dealing。 No longer in physical danger， but still inwardly tortured by his reeducation at the hands of his former best friend， and struggling to assimilate into a dominant culture， the Sympathizer is both charmed and disturbed by Paris。 As he falls in with a group of left-wing intellectuals and politicians who frequent dinner parties given by his French Vietnamese “aunt，” he finds not just stimulation for his mind but also customers for his merchandise―but the new life he is making has dangers he has not foreseen， from the oppression of the state， to the self-torture of addiction， to the seemingly unresolvable paradox of how he can reunite his two closest friends， men whose worldviews put them in absolute opposition。

Both literary thriller and brilliant novel of ideas， The Committed is a blistering portrayal of commitment and betrayal that will cement Viet Thanh Nguyen’s position in the firmament of American letters

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Reviews

Julia ，

2。5** i’m just too stupid for these books

Robert ，

A sequel （or， really， second half） to The Sympathizer and just as brilliant， disturbing， and consoling。 A book of ideas that is also a descent in the Parisian noir of postcolonial France， a gangster novel that deconstructs just about everything and a celebration of the truth that Nothing is Everything and vice versa。 In short， a triumph。

Priscilla ，

Nguyen is a stellar writer， but I still don't like his books。 I didn't like The Sympathizer either （it won the Pulitzer Prize）。 I don't care about his characters， which is probably the reason， but I do appreciate his writing。 Nguyen is a stellar writer， but I still don't like his books。 I didn't like The Sympathizer either （it won the Pulitzer Prize）。 I don't care about his characters， which is probably the reason， but I do appreciate his writing。 。。。more

Johanne ，

Only read 17%。。。but enough！ It's either a recap of The Sympathiser or just too tedious in self justification Only read 17%。。。but enough！ It's either a recap of The Sympathiser or just too tedious in self justification 。。。more

tinaathena ，

As a scatological and perverted Vietnamese Canadian （Canadian Vietnamese？）， self-obsessed with identity， pondering the contradictions and commonalities of capitalism and communism， and fixated on purpose （or lack thereof） of our futile existence， this book is for me。 If you are not the above I don't know that this book will appeal。 🙃 Nguyen's writing is always challenging， dark， funny， heady with philosophy。 Did he redeem some of the shortcomings on writing female characters？ Not sure， but there As a scatological and perverted Vietnamese Canadian （Canadian Vietnamese？）， self-obsessed with identity， pondering the contradictions and commonalities of capitalism and communism， and fixated on purpose （or lack thereof） of our futile existence， this book is for me。 If you are not the above I don't know that this book will appeal。 🙃 Nguyen's writing is always challenging， dark， funny， heady with philosophy。 Did he redeem some of the shortcomings on writing female characters？ Not sure， but there sure is a lot of reckoning with the absurdity of masculinity。 Am very primed to like this book though， based on how the original affected me。 。。。more

Ava Mohsenin ，

This felt like popcorn popping or water boiling。 Like a road runner from Looney Tunes or a jazz piano solo， extra staccato。 There were multi-page stream-of-consciousness sentences punctuated with the frantic double mind of the unnamed protagonist。 It's a book that most felt like a movie – a badgood， action-packed drama twisted with dark humor， double entendres， and scenes that meander through an exploration of what "charming" means for Vietnam vs。 the U。S。 or hang perfectly still at the end of a This felt like popcorn popping or water boiling。 Like a road runner from Looney Tunes or a jazz piano solo， extra staccato。 There were multi-page stream-of-consciousness sentences punctuated with the frantic double mind of the unnamed protagonist。 It's a book that most felt like a movie – a badgood， action-packed drama twisted with dark humor， double entendres， and scenes that meander through an exploration of what "charming" means for Vietnam vs。 the U。S。 or hang perfectly still at the end of a barrel of a gun。 The writing itself is nothing less than a commitment – overdone at times， too circular or reference-heavy， but it's oddly where I felt most enraptured by the mind of the narrator， in all of their insanity and unreliability and illogicality。 I finish it with relief: for the plot to come to a final close after flirting with it the entire latter half of the book， to take a deep breath， and no greater urge to read any old French literature than when I first started， no matter how hard he tried。 。。。more

Emiliya Bozhilova ，

Книгата е директно продължение на “The Sympathiser”。 Не става за самостоятелно четене。 От друга страна， повторенията и свръхинформацията от предната книга са толкова много， че страшно затормозяват сюжета。А самият сюжет е， общо взето， виетнамци в Париж。 Бежанските неволи， империалистическата политика， недоволството на родените във Франция араби， расизмът към тях и всички различни， престъпният свят и гангстерите， корумпираните политици， псевдоинтелектуалците， които се мислят за солта на земята - в Книгата е директно продължение на “The Sympathiser”。 Не става за самостоятелно четене。 От друга страна， повторенията и свръхинформацията от предната книга са толкова много， че страшно затормозяват сюжета。А самият сюжет е， общо взето， виетнамци в Париж。 Бежанските неволи， империалистическата политика， недоволството на родените във Франция араби， расизмът към тях и всички различни， престъпният свят и гангстерите， корумпираните политици， псевдоинтелектуалците， които се мислят за солта на земята - всичко е забъркано в едно цяло。 Но този път сатирата не се е получила толкова свежа。 Гъмжи от повторения и клишета。 Дано следващата книга на автора да е на съвсем друга тема。***💶 “It’s not personal。Politics is always personal， my dear， she said。 That’s what makes it deadly。”💶 “If the price of being human was to be recognized through being pitiful， then to hell with humanity！”💶 “I thought we Vietnamese had hit bottom， under the French， and then saw there was another bottom beneath that with the Americans， when in reality， there was yet another bottom to discover—our own。”💶 “You know what you know。You know what you do not know。But what do you not know that you do not know？And what do you already know that you refuse to know？” 。。。more

Haaris Mateen ，

Wow。 When you start reading The Committed， you feel you're missing something。 A little reflection later you realize what's amiss: it doesn't have the satirical frothiness that The Sympathizer had in dollops。 There is satire and humor in The Committed but it's heavier。 While The Sympathizer dealt with a nameless protagonist using his greatest ability -- to see anything from both sides -- to navigate through an intricate maze of loyalty tests， conspiracy， and betrayal， The Committed follows natura Wow。 When you start reading The Committed， you feel you're missing something。 A little reflection later you realize what's amiss: it doesn't have the satirical frothiness that The Sympathizer had in dollops。 There is satire and humor in The Committed but it's heavier。 While The Sympathizer dealt with a nameless protagonist using his greatest ability -- to see anything from both sides -- to navigate through an intricate maze of loyalty tests， conspiracy， and betrayal， The Committed follows naturally from the complete breakdown he experiences at the end of the last novel。This book doesn't have him navigate as much as blunder about his way through Paris。 He becomes a reluctant gangster， he listens in to intellectuals shallowly theorizing in their safe coves; he is lost。 A man of two selfs， a man who literally fell through the cracks after trying so hard to have a foot on either side finds himself in The City of Light seeing through the hypocrisy of it all yet again。Viet Thanh Nguyen continues his blistering critique of the deep running scars of colonialism and its corrupt， evil， morality。 The canvas has changed to France but Nguyen's thesis， if anything， achieves further coherence。It's quite a read and quite a sequel。 Not the same brilliant cadence as in The Sympathizer but this novel packs quite a punch。 。。。more

Dana ，

I will first say this isn't a great book to listen to on Audible unless you're good at paying attention。 There are a lot of minor characters that have funny nicknames， and toward the end， I realized I couldn't remember who half of them were。 I am currently re-listening and it is going much better。 That said， this is an excellent follow-up to the Sympathizer （with just the right amount of review probably meant for those who hadn't read it but helpful to those with limited headspace to remember de I will first say this isn't a great book to listen to on Audible unless you're good at paying attention。 There are a lot of minor characters that have funny nicknames， and toward the end， I realized I couldn't remember who half of them were。 I am currently re-listening and it is going much better。 That said， this is an excellent follow-up to the Sympathizer （with just the right amount of review probably meant for those who hadn't read it but helpful to those with limited headspace to remember details）。 It has a little of everything: humor， drama， suspense， action， philosophy， history， characters， plot， etc。 And it's even better the second time now that I know who everyone is！ 。。。more

June ，

We refugees exile in cracks of Paris butt，  to Heaven， Eiffel dick。Me， bastard with guilt and shame。Myself， two minds screw loose maim。 hash for cash in clash， remedy the hostile。I choose nothing to defile。Vous êtes moi， Man， et Bon ;Blood brothers forever， gone。Violent cavort;Frightening exhort;Tu es mort ？

Matt Akins ，

Excellent sequel to the sympathizer！

Anna Iliff ，

A long awaited sequel to one of my favorite books， The Sympathizer。 Unfortunately I struggled to love this book。 Nguyen is a clever and artful writer， but I found myself confused in the drug fueled haze of the stream of consciousness and philosophical musings that I didn’t think moved the plot forward。 It complicated the flow of the book， and I found myself just wanting to get back to the main plot and action。 That said， I adore Nguyen and his ability to capture the inner workings of his protago A long awaited sequel to one of my favorite books， The Sympathizer。 Unfortunately I struggled to love this book。 Nguyen is a clever and artful writer， but I found myself confused in the drug fueled haze of the stream of consciousness and philosophical musings that I didn’t think moved the plot forward。 It complicated the flow of the book， and I found myself just wanting to get back to the main plot and action。 That said， I adore Nguyen and his ability to capture the inner workings of his protagonist’s mind and his struggles with identity。 He also eloquently describes the political climate， colonialism， racism and class in France。 。。。more

Don ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 What I enjoyed about the book: - The narrator helps the reader understand the oppression of colonialism and imperialism， and the deep scars they leave。 - The action was entertaining， if you can tolerate blood， gore and torture。 - I enjoyed many of the characters， although keeping them straight can be a little challenging。 Why not more stars？- You really need to work through this book。 Stream-of-consciousness is challenging。 This book deserves two more readings to grok its meaning。 - SPOILER - Pa What I enjoyed about the book: - The narrator helps the reader understand the oppression of colonialism and imperialism， and the deep scars they leave。 - The action was entertaining， if you can tolerate blood， gore and torture。 - I enjoyed many of the characters， although keeping them straight can be a little challenging。 Why not more stars？- You really need to work through this book。 Stream-of-consciousness is challenging。 This book deserves two more readings to grok its meaning。 - SPOILER - Pay attention to Claude。 Claude comes up periodically throughout the book， but it is not until the end that you understand his importance。 At the end， I had to search back through the book to figure out the import of the last page。 - The book is not fun to read。 It is important， and well written， and educational， and transports you into a time and place， but it is heavy going along the way。 It is best read in a graduate seminar where you have deep conversations about the importance of the Mona Lisa to the character。 - I read one review that said you didn't need to read "The Sympathizer" before reading this book。 Now I am reading on Goodreads that everyone thinks you need to read The Sympathizer first。 I did not。 It probably would have helped。 。。。more

Marco ，

Imponente seconda opera dello scrittore vietnamita-americano， secondo "episodio" della sua prima opera - "Il simpatizzante"。 In questo secondo libro si vedono gli stessi personaggi del primo， in un periodo successivo alla "Guerra del Vietnam"， ossia， nei Primi Anni Ottanta del secolo scorso， in una Parigi metà naturale di molti rifugiati vietnamiti。 Nella capitale dell'ex-"madrepatria coloniale"， il protagonista di questo romanzo - che era anche protagonista de "Il simpatizzante" - cerca di crea Imponente seconda opera dello scrittore vietnamita-americano， secondo "episodio" della sua prima opera - "Il simpatizzante"。 In questo secondo libro si vedono gli stessi personaggi del primo， in un periodo successivo alla "Guerra del Vietnam"， ossia， nei Primi Anni Ottanta del secolo scorso， in una Parigi metà naturale di molti rifugiati vietnamiti。 Nella capitale dell'ex-"madrepatria coloniale"， il protagonista di questo romanzo - che era anche protagonista de "Il simpatizzante" - cerca di crearsi una nuova vita in una realtà occidentale tutta caratterizzata da tanti vizi （droga， sesso 。。。）， pur cercando ancora di fare i conti con i fantasmi che lo ossessionano da molto prima del suo arrivo in terra francese。 In libro， questo， molto massiccio denso quanto allo sviluppo estremamente dettagliato della trama e， al contempo， del conflitto interiore del protagonista， tutto preso in continuazione tra， da un lato， la sua "vietnamicità"， "asiaticità" e， dall'altro， la sua "occidentalità" proveniente dal suo padre francese。 Valori， questi due， continuamente messi in questione e quasi reciprocamente negati dal contesto， in cui il protagonista del romanzo si trova a muoversi e dalle persone con cui si confronta: francesi di un mondo molto ideologicamente altolocato e tendenzialmente snobbisti dei non francesi; francesi di origini algerine （arabi di Francia） non perfettamente integrati nella società， in cui sono nati ed hanno sempre vissuto， anche per il rifiuto da parte dei connazionali di pelle bianca di accettarli come compatrioti; asiatici （vietnamiti e cinesi del Vietnam） tutti intenti a fare la loro scalata verso un elevato benessere sociale， attraverso il controllo dei traffici illegali， che più interessano agli occidentali （droga e sesso）， cercando， al contempo， di sbarazzarsi della concorrenza "araba"。 。。。more

Steve Cantrell ，

Best book I've read during the first half of 2021。 A spy novel - think Le Carré - and a refugee story。 Inspired me to read a bit of philosophy as well。 Super smart， yet plot driven。 Thoroughly enjoyable。 Something I'll return to again next year。 Best book I've read during the first half of 2021。 A spy novel - think Le Carré - and a refugee story。 Inspired me to read a bit of philosophy as well。 Super smart， yet plot driven。 Thoroughly enjoyable。 Something I'll return to again next year。 。。。more

Chris ，

Not really sure what the fuss is about。 Writing was fine， plot very thin on the ground

Meike ，

Review to follow！NOTES:Follow-up to his Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Sympathizertells the story of the "sympathizer"， Vo Danh （"anonymous" in Vietnamese）Used to live as a spy in the US trying to infiltrate Hollywood， ended up in a Vietnamese re-education camp where he， a communist， was tortured by his own allies， then spend time in an Indonesian refugee campnow 36-year-old protagonist flees to France in 1981， the country of his father his bloodbrother as enemy， mirror image of himself: inten Review to follow！NOTES:Follow-up to his Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Sympathizertells the story of the "sympathizer"， Vo Danh （"anonymous" in Vietnamese）Used to live as a spy in the US trying to infiltrate Hollywood， ended up in a Vietnamese re-education camp where he， a communist， was tortured by his own allies， then spend time in an Indonesian refugee campnow 36-year-old protagonist flees to France in 1981， the country of his father his bloodbrother as enemy， mirror image of himself: intends to kill communistsVietnamese organized crime and prostitution syndicategang wars with Algerian - Algeria and Vietnamn both colonized by Franceunreliable narratortrauma and circumstanceunscrewed， loose screwfirst and third personidentity: postcolonial theory， communism and capitalism as quasi-religious ideologiesW。E。B。 Du Bois The Souls of Black Folk: "double consciousness"- looking at oneself through the eyes of others- heritage / dominating cultureFrantz Fanon Black Skin， White Masksother （mainly） French intellectuals and postcolonial theorists， postmodern language theory （see Identitti）"Fantasia" culture show: authenticityThe author himself fled Vietnam by boat when he was four years old， then was flown out to the US from a US military base to a refugee camp in Pennsylvania。 can be read as a stand-alone book combines genre writing and satirical humor with a novel of ideas / a political novel， thus melting high-brow and low-brow literatureHe does not take sides， but questions everythingTells Tommy Orange there will be a final installment set in the USNguyen cites W。G。 Sebald as an inspiration （memory， loss） 。。。more

Nancy ，

I loved The Sympathizer and was excited about a sequel。 However， I found the Committed repetitive， tedious， and disappointing。

Maude Iku ，

殖民与被殖民，毒瘾与贩毒者，黑帮与难民，谋杀与同情，所有一切对立都浓缩在一轮俄罗斯轮盘中，被置于绝境凝望自身，象征性的子弹打入脑中，割裂了原本就有着两张面孔的“我”。读完第一本The Sympathizer之后已对作者的文风脱敏，但还是为后记中一句将近千字的独白叹服。

Steve Lively ，

Stunning sequel！ Brush up on your literary theory to get the full experience！！

Danny Marcalo ，

It's been a few years since I read "The Sympathizer"， which was interesting， but did not really catch me。 So， not all the details of the first book were clear when I started reading this， but a lot came back。 This novel， compared to my somewhat murky memory of the first one， is a little faster， easier， more easy going。 There are a lot of moments where the tremendous trauma of the narrator are mentioned。 All in all it feels more like a gangster farce， like a British Guy Ritchie-gangster movie。 I' It's been a few years since I read "The Sympathizer"， which was interesting， but did not really catch me。 So， not all the details of the first book were clear when I started reading this， but a lot came back。 This novel， compared to my somewhat murky memory of the first one， is a little faster， easier， more easy going。 There are a lot of moments where the tremendous trauma of the narrator are mentioned。 All in all it feels more like a gangster farce， like a British Guy Ritchie-gangster movie。 I'm not sure I buy the entire description of the Vietnamese diaspora in France。 By the last third of the novel I got a little lost， the narrative perspective shifts a litte， which I find disorienting， which might be quite fitting for a man like our narrator。 Although I would say the novel is different than the first， the final impression is the same。 Interesting， nothing less， but nothing more， either。 。。。more

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Jeremy Morrison ，

The narrator， whose false Vietnamese name Vo Danh means nobody， arrives in Paris in the 1980s seeking asylum with the help of a gangster called Boss。 The book explores the divided mind of Post-colonialism。

Craig Werner ，

I was dubious about a sequel to The Sympathizer， but Nguyen comes through on very close to the same level。 Again， the echoes of Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man are pervasive， enlivened by the shift to Paris， which complicates the post-colonial double consciousness in fascinating ways。 A bit thick on some of the gangster plot， but definitely confirms Nguyen's place in the first rank of contemporary novelists。 I was dubious about a sequel to The Sympathizer， but Nguyen comes through on very close to the same level。 Again， the echoes of Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man are pervasive， enlivened by the shift to Paris， which complicates the post-colonial double consciousness in fascinating ways。 A bit thick on some of the gangster plot， but definitely confirms Nguyen's place in the first rank of contemporary novelists。 。。。more

Hannah Wiley ，

Couldn't finish it。 Couldn't finish it。 。。。more

M ，

I wanted to love this book because I’m a big fan of Viet but I just couldn’t get into it or understand what was happening。 It felt like too many philosophical asides and not enough plot or action。 I felt lost a lot of the time and wasn’t really engaged。

Justin Lonas ，

Good philosophical spy novel， continuing the exploration of the "double-minded" post-war Vietnamese diaspora culture started in the Sympathizer， this time in France rather than the U。S。Some really soaring passages， but it feels like it lacks some of the literary heft of Nguyen's previous work （which you need to have read before reading this one）。 Good philosophical spy novel， continuing the exploration of the "double-minded" post-war Vietnamese diaspora culture started in the Sympathizer， this time in France rather than the U。S。Some really soaring passages， but it feels like it lacks some of the literary heft of Nguyen's previous work （which you need to have read before reading this one）。 。。。more

Margaret ，

An adventure story with lots of philosophy。 Not my genre。

Jo ，

Don’t start it without reading the sympathiser first。 Be prepared for introspection， violence， introspection drugs introspection and sex introspection and quite a lot about defecation and the conflict between beliefs， convictions and behaviour。

Amy ，

Built upon The Sympathizer beguilingly。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Committed

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Committed&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Committed&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0