A Pho Love Story Book Review

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A Pho Love Story by Loan Le was a great read, and I could not put it down – I read it in less than 24 hours!!

I connected with both Bao and Linh and their desire to have their parents understand their aspirations. The themes of acceptance, immigration, and family were prominent and beautifully crafted!

Before we get into the book review and overview, I want to give out a few trigger warnings within the book. Despite fiction books being a form of escapism from the realities of our world, sometimes those realities can be reflected in fiction.

Trigger Warnings

  • Death (mentioned)/ Grief
  • Racism (racial slur)
  • Xenophobia
  • Panic attack/ disorder
  • Language (cursing)

Disclaimer

  • Book reviews are based on my personal opinion, my thoughts while reading the book, and how the book fulfills my book rating system and its categories.
  • Reviews are not meant to be hurtful – we all have different opinions on what is like in books such as preferences in a story’s point of view (POV), writing style, story pacing, etc.

I will do my best to create spoiler-free book reviews for my reviews; I don’t want to spoil it for people who haven’t yet read the book or plan to read it in the future.

Now, here is a breakdown of the six categories:

  • PLOT: The story centers on Bao and Linh and their growth throughout the story. Bao and Lin have parents who own rivaling pho restaurants across from each other, and both were expected to keep their distance. Bao is searching for direction in his future, whereas Linh already knows she wants to be an artist. An unexpected turn of events makes them cross each other’s paths and form a secret friendship without their families’ knowing. As their feelings grow and the desire to unravel the mystery of their families’ feud with each other, Bao and Linh come to understand their families, themselves, and their community to mend old wounds and form new futures.
  • SETTING: The story’s primary setting is Little Saigon in Southern California. Other settings mentioned include San Francisco, Vietnam, and Huntington Beach.
  • WRITING STYLE: Le’s writing style was one that I thoroughly enjoyed! The Chapters were written in dual Character POVs (point of view): Bao and Linh. The dialogue was enjoyable and realistic while mentioning mainstream pop culture and references without making it cringey. The medium pacing of the story builds up the plot and conflict in the story and the primary character’s growth. Some scenes and dialogues made me cry and outright laugh out loud!
  • CONFLICT/ RESOLUTION: Since the story focuses on Bao and Linh, the book centers on their respective internal/external conflicts within their chapter POV. They both discover new things about themselves, their motivations, and their families and understand them all in the story’s progression. One critique I have is how the family feud that began with their families stemmed from miscommunication.
  • CHARACTERS: The primary characters are Linh (an aspiring and passionate artist) and Bao (wandering/ unsure about his future, and his passions). Supporting characters include Bao’s parents, Linh’s parents, Viet (Bao’s friend), Allison (Linh’s friend), and Evelyn (Linh’s sister). In the book, the supporting and minor characters clash or question the actions of the two teenagers. Likewise, there is a layer of wants with most immigrant stories that don’t synchronize between different generations. Still, it helps move the story and illustrate the main characters’ motivations and personalities.
  • CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: As a reader, I could already see some character development and growth (particularly in Part II of the book). There was a lot of internal/external conflict between Bao and Linh detailed in their respective chapters and perspectives. The book beautifully depicted Bao’s and Linh’s internal/external conflicts regarding their future aspirations, families, community, and love. Le illustrates young love’s beautiful growth, community support, and familial connections and understanding.

Overall Book Rating & Review

I could not put A Pho Love Story and stayed up until four in the morning to finish this book!

A Pho Love Story was an excellent book that reminded me how much of a hopeless romantic I am! I enjoyed it so much that I completed it in two days!

A Pho Love Story was a beautiful young adult contemporary romance that made me smile and grin with all the fluff and sweetness of teenage love! The inclusion of Vietnamese culture and cuisine was so beautifully done to craft the story and made me hungry! I enjoyed the character development and relationships the most! The plot enticed me into reading the most as I love reading about secret/ forbidden romances and rivaling families!

However, I felt like the significant conflict about the family feud was somewhat anticlimactic for my preference. Miscommunication is one of the tropes I dislike, and I anticipated it to be something else!

Therefore, it’s a 4 Star rating for me! I believe this is Loan Le’s debut book, and I’m looking forward to reading more of her work!

Found Book Tropes

  • Feuding Families
  • Meet Cute
  • Mutual Pining
  • First Kiss
  • Dark Family Secret
  • Miscommunication K*lls
  • Food P*rn
  • Bilingual Dialogue

Questions for You

  • What are your thoughts on A Pho Love Story?
  • What parts were retable to you?
  • What themes or ideas did you find?

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