California Book Club: The Best We Could Do

Hi, it’s Vanessa, your ENLIGHTENMENT host

Here’s the latest pick for my bimonthly book club of fiction/non-fiction focused on the Golden State.

Along with the book, I invite a special guest to each club meeting, someone who is an expert or very connected to the theme of the book and can answer our questions about the topic. So even if you haven’t finished / opened the book, you can still be part of the conversation.

Because 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, and the successive airlifts of 100,000-plus Vietnamese refugees and asylum-seekers to the U.S. (many who settled in California), I picked by Tui Bui. The 2017 illustrated memoir chronicles her parents' life before and during the Vietnam War, their escape from Vietnam when Bui was a child, and their eventual migration to the United States as refugees.

The idea for the novel began when Bui was working on her Master’s thesis and doing oral history interviews with her parents. But she wanted her family’s history shared wit a wider audience than just her graduate school advisor and peers. So for the next ten years, Bui trained herself to draw comics and developed the novel, which ultimately won the American Book Award.

Below is the writeup of The Best We Could Do. I will give info about our special guest here once they’re confirmed. Join me at Ruhstaller BSMT for a book discussion over drinks, and to pick the next read.

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This beautifully illustrated and emotional story is an evocative memoir about the search for a better future and a longing for the past. Exploring the anguish of immigration and the lasting effects that displacement has on a child and her family, Bui documents the story of her family’s daring escape after the fall of South Vietnam in the 1970s, and the difficulties they faced building new lives for themselves.

At the heart of Bui’s story is a universal struggle: While adjusting to life as a first-time mother, she ultimately discovers what it means to be a parent—the endless sacrifices, the unnoticed gestures, and the depths of unspoken love. Despite how impossible it seems to take on the simultaneous roles of both parent and child, Bui pushes through. With haunting, poetic writing and breathtaking art, she examines the strength of family, the importance of identity, and the meaning of home.

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Ruhstaller BSMT has a variety of beers on tap, as well as wine, kombucha and N/A beverages. Please feel free to BYO food.

Transportation Options include:
* Hourly street parking meters along L Street
* Covered/outdoor parking garages on L Street/Kayak Alley between 7th and 8th Street ($12)
* City garages: Capitol Garage at 1129 10th St. and City Hall Garage at 917 10th St. ($7)
* Light rail transit: Ruhstaller is close to stops on the Blue, Green and Gold lines

For more information about ENLIGHTENMENT and about California Groundbreakers, go to californiagroundbreakers.org

Also check out other Meetups in Sacramento, Arts events in Sacramento, Trips & Adventurous Activities in Sacramento.