Love Can't Feed You

by Cherry Lou Sy

A beautiful, tender yet searing debut novel about intergenerational fractures and coming of age, following a young woman who immigrates to the United States from the Philippines and finds herself adrift between familial expectations and her own burning desires

Love Can't Feed You is a stunning, heartbreaking, and compressed look at coming of age, shifting notions of home, and the disintegration of the American dream. It asks What does it mean to be of multiple cultures without a road map for how to belong?        

After a harrowing flight, Queenie, her younger brother, and their elderly Chinese father arrive in the United States from the Philippines. They’re here to finally reunite with Queenie’s Filipina mother, who has been working as a nurse in Brooklyn for the past few years—building a life that everyone hopes will set them up for better prospects. But her mother is not the same woman she was in the Something in her face is different, almost hardened, and she seems so American already.
 
Queenie, on the cusp of adulthood, has big dreams of attending college, of spending her days immersed in the pages of books. But there is not enough money for her and her brother to both be in school, so first she must work. Queenie rotates through jobs and settles, tentatively, into her new life, but her brother begins to withdraw and act out, and her father’s anger swells. As the pressures of assimilation compound, and the fissures within her family deepen into fractures, Queenie is left suspended between two countries, two identities, and two parents.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Aapi, Audiobook, Coming Of Age, Literary Fiction, Book Club

329 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 8, 2024

Reviews

[Melany · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an intriguing story to read. I loved Queenie and her nature of exploring new things. Her family dynamic was a bit messy but also kept the story interesting. I find the backstory and details about Filipinos truly interesting, so I loved when the author detailed more that throughout the story. I had to give a star off though due to the ending. I believe it left me clueless. There was so much left unfinished and unsaid about all of what went on throughout the story that the ending left me confused and disappointed. Otherwise a good read!

I received this ARC from a Goodreads giveaway. All of the statements above are my true opinions after fully reading this book.

[Christopher Febles · Rating 3 out of 5]

17-year-old Queenie immigrates to Brooklyn via the roughest of flights with her elderly father and little brother. Her heritage is mixed, as her father was born in China, but she grew up in the Philippines, and not exactly in the poshest of circumstances. Her mother has already been living in Brooklyn and working as a nurse. But when Queenie moves in, she experiences more problems than just assimilating. She’s forced to work to pay off what it cost to get her to America, and the job she gets is taking care of an enfeebled matriarch in Manhattan, something of a distant relative. And as she struggles, the bitterness and jealousy between her parents, her brother, and her extended family spills forth.

The base material attracted me to this October release. The jacket delivers on its promise: there are vivid scenes of Sunset Park and Park Slope. I got that warm feeling seeing spots in my ‘hood. Sy gives us plenty of detail of what it’s like to live and work in the less glamorous, less avant garde Brooklyn.



Also of note is the immigrant experience. It’s clear from the beginning that Queenie isn’t living the idyllic American Dream. As she wipes Ms. Beatriz’s bottom, her resentment and disappointment come through. She’s an avid reader and pretty good student, but attending college seems like an inconvenience and a burden. Making money is an obstacle. She also finds it tough to make friends, and the only friend (Yan, himself a Chinese immigrant) she makes is dealing with some identity issues of his own.

What this story lacks is structure. It has the makings of a tense family drama, but what develops is more of a “slice-of-life” narrative, in the style of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Too many interesting plot pieces are frustratingly left with no resolution. For example, she has a relationship with an heir of sorts, but when an incident occurs, he completely disappears. Also, Queenie makes the point early on that she needs permanent residency (“green card”) to stay in America, and that insecurity is important. But we never find out what happens. Same for her friend’s lover: there seems to be an attraction, but nothing happens. Queenie comes off as a drifter of sorts, an MC with neither drive nor direction. That’s fine for Henry Chinaski (Charles Bukowski's alter ego), but I don’t think that’s what this is going for.

Sy also seems to be trying to make a few points. One has something to do with mores and expectations for women. She uses Queenie’s mother as an example of the female, Filipina immigrant’s limits: Queenie resents her relationship with a new man and tries to figure out her own wishes. Once in a while she or another female character will think or express something related to how women are treated in immigrant relationships. It’s a “diggable” concept, and a good theme.

The problem is that it gets drowned in a sea of ideas, few of which get necessary development. I don’t understand the relationship Queenie has with her father, or what happens to Yan, or how she plans to attend school. She tries her hand at being a sex worker, but I never understood exactly why: the connection with her thoughts is tenuous at best. She meets characters, has a few conversations, but they’re left with no development. And on page 310 or so, it just ends rather abruptly.

That in mind, I wonder if this would’ve worked better as a memoir. Crying in H Mart came to mind: a young woman looking back on her fiery relationship with her immigrant mother. Michelle Zauner gave us sheer poetry, honest reflection, and vibrant stories which conveyed both her feelings of guilt and pride, along with well-constructed ideas of identity and immigration. Sy can clearly write, and the first-person narrative really works. Trying to squeeze all that feeling and all those statements into a loose plot just didn’t work for me. But in a straightforward telling from the woman herself? I’d have read that gleefully.

[Riley Murphy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rating: 1.5/5

As I was browsing some new and upcoming books on NetGalley, this read sparked my interest. Not only did the plot seem emotionally intricate, but the characters all seemed to be written genuinely meaning that the author didn't try to sugarcoat their flaws. In my humble opinion, when you combine those two elements you're usually left with a wonderful book of literary fiction. In addition to these two things, the plot depicts something that counselors, social workers, and other mental health professionals have slowly begun to embark upon studying: intergenerational trauma. This topic has become more and more relevant in recent years, so I was intrigued to see how it would be depicted and written in this book. However, after I turned the final page (not literally of course, unfortunately, e-readers have not gotten that advanced), I was left feeling very disappointed and honestly a bit confused. The book starts out well enough with Queenie journeying to America and describing how her mother has been changed by American culture and how her father starts to act out on his resentment of this change. After that...the plot just seems to kind of go all over the place. I felt like Cherry Lou Sy tried to keep the reader's attention by throwing a bunch of different plot points, but then lost the whole focus of the plot. For instance, at one point Queenie tries to be a sex worker of sorts by giving massages to men. Yet two chapters later, she stops and doesn't remark on the experience again. If Lou Sy had picked just one or two plot points to further develop, I think it would've read a lot better. As I got to the end of the book, I was hoping the ending would round everything out and I could see how the different pieces of Queenie's story fit together. Nope, not a chance. Instead, the book ended so abruptly that I checked to make sure I downloaded the entire ARC. All in all, the book had potential but did not come together.

[♡ jess ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 - rounded down.

I just want to start this review by giving a huge thank you to the author, Cherry Lou Sy. I have never felt more seen, more validated, or more excited throughout a story. As a first gen Filipino-America, I resonated with the main character, Queenie, so much. Even though I was born in the U.S., my mom immigrated to America as a young adult, so many pieces of Queenie’s experience mirrored my childhood. I definitely saw my mom and her friends in Queenie’s Ma and her friends.

I feel like this book panders more to someone who has experienced Filipino culture or is Filipino themself. There are many nods to Filipino traditional and Tagalog, which is not translated so it may be hard for people who don’t speak the language. Sometimes the context clues were not enough to fully understand the phrase(s), as someone who can read some Tagalog it was still difficult at points.

This story was so close to 5 stars, but the last quarter of it really brought it down. The story began to move very fast, both in terms of time and character development. Certain decisions were made and many loose ends were not wrapped by the end. The abrupt conclusion left me with mixed feelings and honestly made me kinda sad. However, I absolutely loved this story overall and it kept me very interested throughout.

Thank you so much to Cherry Lou Sy, Netgalley and Penguin Group Dutton for this eARC!

[Sol]

Where do I begin? Oh: I LOVE IT.

The main character Queenie was named after Queen Elizabeth because her mom used to be so taken with Princess Diana. She's also a Chinese-Filipino eldest daughter to parents who resent each other. She, little seventeen-year-old girl, is being put in the middle of their squabbles. She did not want this. She did not ask for this. But both parents whether they're aware of it or not are battling it out with her smack-dab in the middle of the crossfire.

In between the story's linear progress, we are given vignettes from Queenie's memories, all of them stitching the book together in a way that felt supple, satisfying. Not a single space in this novel is wasted. I think this is a mark of good storytelling.

In the vignettes, we understand the characters even further, and in its linear timeline, we are wrenched bodily alongside Queenie as she experiences her life as a young immigrant. She befriends new people, works as a caregiver, has crushes, has crisis after crisis after crisis. And what's even better: these characters she encounters have rich, full lives as well. None of them are perfect and all of them are portrayed exactly as messed up as they feel.
- Yan and his closed-off-ness, his selective honesty and vulnerability, his "sluttiness" as Queenie had pegged
- her Papa and his incendiary rage which is sparked by the gasoline of his traditionalist upbringing and all the skewed beliefs he'd carried with him throughout his life
- her Ma and her burning resentment towards Papa, and by extension towards Queenie as well for being the supposed curse-ender who just ended up being a curse
- Junior and the way he tries to hold on to his youth, the way he's learning that he needs to grow up as quickly as his Ate
- even the side characters Flor, Tita Cynthia, Lucia, Ms. B., Zeus, Masha--see, I can even name them all off the top of my head as if they were my neighbors. Even the characters whose lives Queenie recalled from her memories, the girl who slit her wrists after being left by a guy she slept with and the disturbing guy with a regression disorder.
They all feel real to me. That's another mark of good storytelling.

My amazement is not just bias--understand, you can give me a book about Filipinos that doesn't pander to foreign eyes and i am immediately in love--it's also plain FACT. This is a good novel through and through. Like the main character in this novel, I'm also a US immigrant, and an eldest daughter, and although the similarities stop there, I felt deeply immersed in this main character's story. My family and I waited more than ten years (TEN YEARS!!!) to legally immigrate in the US, and every bit of the process chipped away certain parts of myself that I'll never get back for better or worse, but I've heard of stories like this one in which people who clung to less legal ways to haul themselves out of their state of life in the countries they've left behind, and this is not just limited to those from the Philippines.

There's a long history of colonization and exploitation that comes with telling stories of my homeland, and I'm so so glad to see that sprinkled throughout the entire novel as well. The cultural landscape of the Philippines which extends to the cultural landscape we each bring with us as we move to other countries is teeming with a long hard-earned resilience (which is forced upon us). There's also that long line of generational trauma that each eldest daughter has to bear and later conquer. We all move forward regardless. That all shows in this book. I think that's another mark of good storytelling.

Massive thanks to Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for giving me advanced access to this title!! I'm SO excited for its official release.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely yet heartbreaking poignant look at immigration and The American Dream. Ma, Papa, Junior and Queenie leave Manila for New York Ma gets a job as a nurse and Queenie who is 17 hopes to get her GED and go to college. In the meantime she works as a home-health care aid for an old woman whose family is odd and doesn't always understand her Chinese-Filipino customs. But her parents split up and Queenie is adrift in a city where she feels alone and forgotten. After a series of different jobs she realizes she must "grow up" and adapt like all of us who move and want things to stay the same.
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

[｡°✩ Rasha ｡°✩ {Free Palestine} · Rating 3 out of 5]

{3.5}

[darcie | paperbacks4ever · Rating 3 out of 5]

This cover and title are what initially interested me, and I’m always intrigued by intergenerational stories. This novel follows a young woman, Queenie, after she immigrates from the Philippines to the US with her family at 18. It is a first-person account of her first years of adulthood as she navigates the chaos and hardships of her life.

It reads a lot like a memoir as she recounts her experiences and thoughts and deals heavily with issues of intergenerational trauma, racism, misogyny, coming of age, abuse, the so-called American dream, access to education, poverty, inequality, sexuality, home, and identity. The author aims to tackle all of these topics and themes through this intimate snapshot of Queenie’s life, all underscored with a specific emphasis on the limits and social barriers placed on women and how they can or cannot move through the world.

I enjoyed the raw honesty that expressed the reality of these human experiences without trying to make them more widely palatable. The narrative was intimate and the willingness to not manufacture a hopeful story was refreshing. But ultimately, the story lacked a sense of focus or direction, in which the reader is just being told the things that happen and are left to make meaning (which could very well be the author’s intent), and we still end up with all these plot points that feel unfinished and underdeveloped.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton books for the eARC, as well as Goodreads and the publisher for the gifted physical ARC, in exchange for an honest review.

[Dana K · Rating 3 out of 5]

{3.5 stars}

Thanks to Dutton Books for the gifted copy.

This is a story of a family split by immigration and reunited as wholly different people. I liked a lot of aspects of the story, especially at the compromises one must make to fit in. However, I feel like it hit on so many stereotypes with poverty, violence and over sexualization. I know that is probably a reality for many people, however, I needed a little more hope or some kind of a light at the end of the tunnel. Should you assimilate, should you go home, should you become a wholly different person? I feel like I didn’t get an answer to that.

[julita · Rating 3 out of 5]

im depressed

[Sarah Lodder · Rating 2 out of 5]

‘How do I tell him that this psychological gymnastics routine is a result of over three hundred years of Spanish rule, the Japanese and American occupations, and how over the decades the country once known as “The Pearl of the Orient” became a cesspool of crime and poverty, falling apart from the corruption of the wealthy families that control all aspects of society, from the cheap TV and film entertainment to the monopoly of industries?’

‘Love Can’t Feed You’ is a struggling immigrant tale, with writing that struggles in solidarity with the plot. Writing and publishing is a monumental task, and congratulations to the author on getting the project to this stage, but ultimately it adds nothing to a genre already teeming with absent father, emotional abusive Asian mother, and sexually exploited immigrant women stereotypes. Queenie is the child that forced a shotgun wedding between her mother and father, and is constantly reminded of the burden of her birth. After immigrating to the United States, Queenie finds herself in New York City, a place full of opportunities just out of reach. Ultimately, this leads to her stumbling through her teen years, splintered between American and Filipino culture, making infuriating decisions that have no emotional payoff as a reader.

What Lou Sy Gives Us:
• Unlikeable narrator, Queenie is infuriating and I genuinely can’t figure out why she does what she does
• Tired Filipino/Asian immigrant stereotypes, some of which is very dangerous to perpetuate (SA, DA, etc.)
• Weird time jumps in writing, with loads of repetition and telling not showing prose

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh.....I'd give it a 4.5 only for the actual Tagalog phrases and Filipino references (depiction of the "harsh reality" of Filipino-American dream that I've ever read so far in fiction). Aside from that, there wasn't an actual plot, it was mainly a view into the main character's life and the chaos of her family's dynamics. It ended somewhat abruptly. Magulo yung buhay nila and the whole time I just kept thinking bakit ganito sila. Habang binabasa ko, mas naiinis ako sa mga magulang niya, ang abiyagon nila. I guess that's the point, but I just can't relate about the personal life stuff. Filipino culture/thoughts were interesting tho. I like how the chapters were short.

[Emma Ash · Rating 2 out of 5]

this book had potential but was all over the place in narration style, plot, and the literal structure of its writing on the page. i thought i’d find it interesting and timely, but instead i was left with a “what was that??” and some dissatisfaction. this could have been a deep slice of life, social commentary on undocumented immigration, which the book definitely touches on, but instead it barely grazes the surface on these topics. was interesting but not very much.

[Suki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This would have been 5 stars if the book actually went somewhere. Awesome writing, abrupt end.

[Arun Rama-Krishnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and powerful. Testament to the strength of immigrants and the disenfranchised who struggle invisibly. A coming of age story that has allowed me to gain perspective and appreciate my childhood and life.

[s · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to Isabel DaSilva, Dutton, and NetGalley for this e-galley! I'll start off by saying that I went in with absolutely no expectations after I received an email with access to an e-galley besides a beautiful cover and eye-catching title. While this book didn't necessarily resonate with me, I have no doubt that many people will be able to find themselves in it. I am no stranger to stories belonging to the "American dream is dead" school of thought, but I tend to favor books with a glimmer of hope sewn throughout, and the tone of the book was much more cynical than I had hoped for. Regardless, the prose was brilliantly written, and I can tell this author has a very bright future ahead.

Edit: a month later I think about this book every time I take a shower because I'm currently at my parent's house and they only have Irish spring soap. why were there so many offhand comments about how poor Irish spring makes her smell?

[Clair · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a title! So true but so dark, Powerful stuff!

There are a lot of things I liked about this because it felt like life: hurried and abrupt and tough. You just never know what's going to happen! These characters were really well developed and I was surprised by the book's contents and happenings. The titular moment brought it all together. Mothers and daughters and families and angst.

I'm kind of depressed now but I liked it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

[Felicia Bisaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

I devoured this book. Such an impressive debut, beautiful prose and emotional writing. The first 70% of the story was stunning, five stars. Then things took a turn that left me wanting more/something different from the ending. Comes out in October 2024. It’s worth a read!

[Lora · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5, rounded down. As a first-gen Filipino-American, this book really spoke to me, but I’m not sure that it will be well-received by those who do not share our history.

[Mary W · Rating 2 out of 5]

As much as I wanted to read this book, and I wanted to like this book I just couldn't get into it.

I really love the writing style and the way the book is laid out, but when it comes to the actual content of the book it was truly depressing.

That may have been the desired effect of trying to understand the struggles of being an immigrant in America, but I feel like the characters were just shitty people. The mother was way too selfish and self-absorbed to realize her family was falling apart and when she did realize the state of her family she didn't care. The father was a complete asshole and expected after years and years of being apart everything to fall into place after moving to a new country and giving very little grace for any situation. The brother was honestly just being a kid, and with zero structure and stability of course he would fall through the cracks, but he was also the golden child and could really do no wrong so having that superiority complex along with no structure is truly what caused him to be such an asshole. And for Queenie, I wanted to say she was just misunderstood and set up to fail when she moved to America but I also cant. I get trying to make your way is hard and that you can't have everything delivered to you on a silver platter, but she needed to realize that just because a door closed and something shitty happened doesn't mean her life is over.

Also, Queenie did have it rough and this is where the spoilers will come in so stop reading if you would like to read the book.

But I think she really stopped caring when her mom started dating Rava, and he started to parent her. It also didn't help that her father came at her, her brother, and mother with a knife because Ma was cheating on the dad with Rava but I think that's when she stopped caring and stopped making an effort. I also hated the fact that she kept going back to Zeus and it was only after they hooked up that he kinda dropped off the face of the earth. I also get that she was conflicted because of Zeus' mother's comment about how essential Queenie wasn't good enough for her son, but come on.... Hes a big boy he can make his own decisions.

Lets also not forget the fact that Queenie becomes a prostitute and escort? Like what is that? And why did we have to go into such GRAPHIC detail about the encounters?! Like STOP! We get it !! It sucked, and it made her feel terrible about herself. Stop being so graphic!

At the end of the book, there is no closure. I get that her story might not be over and that she is still figuring it out, and not every book has to have a happy ending. But at the end of the book, Queenie seems way more damaged and in a much worse spot than any of the other characters. Including her father who is in hospice.

The only parts of the book is where she talked about her culture, the little interactions between her and the other Filipino characters (outside the family) and anytime Queenie was talking about the Philippines or College. I feel like I did learn more about the culture and I'm glad I did. But would I recommend this book? Probably not. Do I regret reading this book? Not entirely, but I am left with a sour taste in my mouth and probably will never read this book again.

[Hillary · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Here she is now. A woman, once again, transformed.”
“It doesn’t matter away. It’s not the Philippines. Here, we have a different life. A different set of problems.”
“No but. Just that people come here, and they change. This country [America] changes you.”
3.5 stars!

This was a book about Filipino immigrants in America but in the perspective of a young 18 year old girl. I loved how the beginning of the book showed the realities of moving away and understanding the new world you just arrived to. There were so many references about Filipinos and Americans that were so realistic which I loved so so much. This book made me feel seen and heard which was amazing to read! :)

However, reaching parts 2 and 3 made it a little harder to continue reading. While this may be true for many Filipino immigrants, it was sad how the author portrayed it as if Filipinos will always have toxic tendencies. The portrayal of some were right but I was hoping to read more on how queenie (main character) navigated her family trauma from there. it seemed as if queenie was being pegged as the rebellious Filipino girl who loves her family but can’t quite put her feet on the ground. it was hard reading that and disappointing to see that she had minimal growth at the end.

Regardless of that, I enjoyed the many Philippine references and the differences of that with American culture. I liked this book a lot and loved how the author was originally from the Philippines too, I felt more connected with her in that sense.

[Souporn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little taste of the views of America from the eyes of an immigrant. The disappointment of the American dream disappearing right before your eyes. Unsure of what to make of this new culture.

I describe as a little taste because the book never really elaborated to great detail. Just a little dab into a bit of everything, that certain people would never experience, but only read about. Possibly gasp when it comes on the news. But this is a reality for some people. It’s sad and not glamorous, but you strive for what you know is best.

[Ashley Kosik · Rating 2 out of 5]

This should really come with a warning of a unconsensual sexual nature. That would have let me know this was not a book for me to read at this time. I don’t want to read about young women ‘trying out’ sex work. And overall I did not enjoy the story arc.

This book taps into the raw coming of age for women of low income backgrounds and I did enjoy getting to know about what Philippine immigrants think coming to America.

[Joyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars, raised to a 4. This, although fiction, reads like an autobiographical diary type recounting of a poor Philippine girl who has recently emigrated to New York from the Philippines. Her life story is slow reading, yet memorable. Queenie, the girl, lives and grows through her late teens and early twenties. Thanks to Net Galley and Dutton for an ARC for an honest review.

[Gabi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her writing felt choppy at first but once I was in Queenies world I could only root for her. Quick, chaotic, unexpected, but the style mirrored her coming of age perfectly. There are little gold nuggets of poetry throughout. Overall enjoyed the ride, though I’m not sure I was supposed to.

[Sumaiya Rahman · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was good! I wish that the Tagalog had some more context to it or maybe some translations idk. Ik I can look it all up but doesn’t that take away from it all?

The ending hits close to home, her dad reminds me of mine in so many ways.

[Cerealflakes · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book didn’t work for me. We had characters that came and went for no apparent reason, plot points that started and disappeared and then the book had no proper ending. Whatever the author meant to convey, I didn’t get it.

[Emily Nicoletta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love Can’t Feed You was a depressingly accurate depiction of how the American Dream is, oftentimes, simply that—a dream. Queenie, a young undocumented immigrant from the Philippines, travels to the U.S. with her father and brother to join her mother, who has already established herself in New York. While Queenie has visions of college and the quintessential American teen experience in her head, her reality is much more bleak. She is forced to take jobs to pay off the cost of getting to America, caretaking for an ungrateful elderly woman in Manhattan. She lives in a tense household with mutually resentful parents and commonplace violence. The American dreams she fantasized about are not achievable due to her difficult assimilation, demanding schedule, and lack of funds.

Love Can’t Feed You was strong in its storylines on identity, self-preservation, and the unfortunate reality of the U.S. immigration experience, where the dream so many sacrifice so much to reach is rarely fulfilled.

What did this book a disservice, however, was the fact that it often felt like it didn’t know what it wanted or needed to be. There were so many side plots and ideas that were introduced only to go nowhere or end abruptly, which often felt disorienting and confusing. There was a romantic interest that truly didn’t add anything to the plot, ending just as quickly as it started. A subplot involving a friend navigating his sexuality also felt out of the blue and anticlimactic. Queenie very spontaneously decides to try sex work, which felt out of place for her character. There were just so many moments where it felt like Sy was throwing things at a wall to see what would stick. Unfortunately, that muddied the integrity and message of the story.

All in all, Love Can’t Feed You had some powerful messages, but the execution and random subplots watered it down.

[Chelsey Trout · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was provided this by NetGalley.

Love Can't Feed You by Cherry Lou Su explores the complex struggles of a Filipino immigrant family trying to rebuild their lives in the U.S. The story centers on Queenie, a young woman who is reunited with her mother after she has spent years working as a nurse in the U.S. Along with her father and younger brother, Queenie arrives in the U.S. with hopes of building a better future, only to face the harsh reality that her mother is not the same person she once was. The novel delves into themes of family dysfunction, intergenerational trauma, and the emotional toll of sacrifice and survival.

Queenie's dreams of attending college are dashed by the financial strain on the family, forcing her to take a job as a caregiver for an elderly woman. Meanwhile, her family unravels further—her father's anger escalates, her mother’s infidelity comes to light, and her brother’s behavior becomes increasingly erratic. These mounting pressures push Queenie to a breaking point, leading her into a journey of self-discovery that includes her experimenting with her sexuality and eventually becoming a sex worker.

While Love Can't Feed You touches on significant themes such as trauma and survival, the narrative struggles with its execution. The plot seems disjointed, with numerous plot points introduced but not fully explored or tied together. For instance, the book hints at Queenie's inner conflict and her attempts to make sense of her fractured family, but it fails to fully examine how these experiences shape her growth or inform her decisions by the end. The narrative jumps from one crisis to the next, leaving readers with a sense of incompleteness and frustration as the book ends abruptly, without giving adequate closure or reflection on the events that transpired.

One of the most striking issues is the lack of resolution. Many of the plot threads—Queenie's evolving relationship with her mother, her struggles with her father, and her journey into sex work—are introduced but never fully explored or tied into a coherent narrative. While the novel attempts to tackle deep issues like intergenerational trauma and identity, these themes are underdeveloped, leaving readers with unanswered questions.

Despite its raw exploration of difficult topics, the book's pacing is uneven, and the characters feel underdeveloped. Queenie’s personal growth and emotional journey are not fully fleshed out, making it hard to connect with her struggles on a deeper level. Additionally, the abrupt ending leaves the reader wanting more, with few answers about how Queenie's experiences have shaped her or what she learned from them.

In conclusion, Love Can't Feed You offers a glimpse into the challenges of navigating identity and survival within the immigrant experience, but it ultimately fails to provide the depth and closure needed to make these themes resonate fully. The plot's many twists and turns lack sufficient development, and the novel's abrupt ending leaves the reader with a sense of dissatisfaction. While the book certainly has potential, it struggles with cohesion and leaves much to be desired in terms of character development and thematic resolution.

[Nicole Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was a little darker than I had expected. Although, re-reading the back of the book praise the information was there. I should not have been surprised. I did read quickly through the book and it is an intriguing story. I’m not an immigrant and can’t relate in that manner but the descriptions are vivid and I feel for Queenie as she must grow up without much real support from the adults around her. Yes, they brought her to America, but then what? She has to figure that out. Just be mentally prepared for a few rough scenes. I liked seeing that by the end of the book, she’s pursuing what she deems worthy of her time.