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may book club: build your house around my body by violet kupersmith

we’re excited to announce our may book club selection:

build your house around my body by violet kupersmith!

a genre-bending, atmospheric novel that drifts between ghost story, historical fiction, and literary mystery, build your house around my body follows multiple women across timelines in vietnam, each grappling with disappearance, memory, and the lingering presence of the past. when a young vietnamese american woman vanishes in present-day saigon, her story begins to intertwine with others: a french colonial-era orphan, a vengeful spirit, and a series of uncanny events that blur the line between the living and the dead. lush, eerie, and deeply layered, the novel explores themes of identity, inheritance, and the stories that refuse to stay buried.

violet kupersmith is a vietnamese american author whose work often draws on vietnamese folklore and history, weaving together diasporic identity with elements of the supernatural, making this a perfect pick for our "dreaming between worlds" theme in celebration of asian american and pacific islander heritage month.

can’t wait to get into this haunting, intricate, and unforgettable may read together.

want to participate in a leaves book club? email events@leavesbookstore.com.