Banyan Moon

Banyan Moon is a 2023 debut novel by Vietnamese-American author Thao Thai. Thai based the novel in part on her own experiences as an immigrant, but the story is not otherwise autobiographical. The novel received positive reviews, and was longlisted for the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize. Banyan Moon spans several decades and contains elements of historical fiction, telling the story of three generations of women from a Vietnamese family as they navigate life in the United States. It utilizes some of the conventions of Southern Gothic fiction as it explores the grief process and the challenges of familial relationships.

This guide uses the 2023 HarperCollins e-book edition of Banyan Moon.

Content Warning: This novel contains instances of domestic violence, murder, and anti-Asian racism.

Plot Summary

Banyan Moon has three narrators: Ann, a woman in her late 20s who lives with her rich boyfriend, Noah; Hương, Ann’s mother, a woman in her early 50s who lives in Florida; and Minh, Hương’s mother, a woman in her late 60s whose health declines after she suffers a fall. Ann has not visited or spoken to her mother in years, though she has always been close with her grandmother.