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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'Sonny and Vince have always known each other. It took two years of juvie, a crazy mother (her), a violent father (him) and a porn stash for them to meet again.
'Sonny is in her last year of school and with protective parents she is forced to watch the world from her bedroom window. She has a habit of falling hopelessly in love with just about anyone. Vince is handsome, brash, a leader in the gangs, who became a legend after he was taken away by juvenile justice two years ago. Now, Vince is back. One problem – they have not been friends since they were children. Growing up in the vertigo of 1990's Cabramatta, of households which harbour histories and parents who are difficult to love, they stumble upon each other once more.
'While sharing the ugly and scary details of Western Sydney in this time, Vivian Pham also illuminates the beauty, hope, possibility, kindness and love that can spring from small gestures and strong friendships.' (Publication summary)
Notes
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'A stage adaptation of Vivian Pham’s debut novel The Coconut Children (Vintage) has been commissioned as part of Playwriting Australia’s Ignition program.' (Books + Publishing 7 July 2020)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Sound recording.
- Large print.
Works about this Work
-
What I’m Reading
2021
single work
column
— Appears in: Meanjin Online 2021; -
Reading and Viewing
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: English in Australia , vol. 55 no. 2 2020; (p. 58-63)
— Review of The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling 2019 single work novel ; How It Feels to Float 2019 single work novel ; The Coconut Children 2017 single work novel ; The Yield 2019 single work novel ; Fire Front : First Nations Poetry and Power Today 2020 anthology poetry essay ; A Ghost In My Suitcase 2009 single work children's fiction -
What I’m Reading
2020
single work
column
— Appears in: Meanjin Online 2020; -
Coming of Age in Cabramatta
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , July 2020;
— Review of The Coconut Children 2017 single work novel'Over the years I’ve amassed many books by writers from Vietnam as well as the Việt Kiều diaspora – but I can’t claim these tomes spark joy. I can’t bear to get rid of them yet can’t bear the thought of reading most of them either. The Boat by Nam Le, for example, is one such albatross. When it was first published, and in the years after, I was often asked if I’d read it. My ready response was usually along the lines of no, but I own a copy. Whenever I’ve contemplated cracking the book open I recall it includes a short story called ‘Love and Honour and Pity and Pride and Compassion and Sacrifice’, which sounds far too much like a word association exercise in intergenerational trauma.' (Introduction)
-
The Coconut Children by Vivian Pham
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , April no. 420 2020;
— Review of The Coconut Children 2017 single work novel'The Coconut Children is an assured début from nineteen-year-old novelist Vivian Pham, who has drawn upon the richness of Sydney’s south-western suburbs to construct a deeply affecting coming-of-age story revolving around teenager Sonny.' (Introduction)
-
Vivian Pham : The Coconut Children
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 7-13 March 2020;
— Review of The Coconut Children 2017 single work novel'Set in 1990s Cabramatta, The Coconut Children opens with charismatic 16-year-old Vince Tran celebrating his release from two years in juvenile detention. His laughter, “thundering through the entire neighbourhood”, drips with stolen homegrown mango as his friends push him in a shopping trolley. The procession passes his childhood friend Sonny Vuong, who dreams of being whisked away from her emotionally unpredictable mother. Instead, the dutiful Sonny finds solace in bodice-rippers, schoolyard gossip with her best friend and conversations with her good-natured father and sassy grandmother.'(Introduction)
-
The Coconut Children by Vivian Pham
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , April no. 420 2020;
— Review of The Coconut Children 2017 single work novel'The Coconut Children is an assured début from nineteen-year-old novelist Vivian Pham, who has drawn upon the richness of Sydney’s south-western suburbs to construct a deeply affecting coming-of-age story revolving around teenager Sonny.' (Introduction)
-
Coming of Age in Cabramatta
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: Sydney Review of Books , July 2020;
— Review of The Coconut Children 2017 single work novel'Over the years I’ve amassed many books by writers from Vietnam as well as the Việt Kiều diaspora – but I can’t claim these tomes spark joy. I can’t bear to get rid of them yet can’t bear the thought of reading most of them either. The Boat by Nam Le, for example, is one such albatross. When it was first published, and in the years after, I was often asked if I’d read it. My ready response was usually along the lines of no, but I own a copy. Whenever I’ve contemplated cracking the book open I recall it includes a short story called ‘Love and Honour and Pity and Pride and Compassion and Sacrifice’, which sounds far too much like a word association exercise in intergenerational trauma.' (Introduction)
-
Reading and Viewing
2020
single work
review
— Appears in: English in Australia , vol. 55 no. 2 2020; (p. 58-63)
— Review of The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling 2019 single work novel ; How It Feels to Float 2019 single work novel ; The Coconut Children 2017 single work novel ; The Yield 2019 single work novel ; Fire Front : First Nations Poetry and Power Today 2020 anthology poetry essay ; A Ghost In My Suitcase 2009 single work children's fiction -
What I’m Reading
2020
single work
column
— Appears in: Meanjin Online 2020; -
What I’m Reading
2021
single work
column
— Appears in: Meanjin Online 2021;
Awards
- 2021 shortlisted New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards — Multicultural NSW Award
- 2021 shortlisted Victorian Premier's Literary Awards — Prize for Fiction
- 2021 shortlisted Voss Literary Prize
- 2021 winner The Sydney Morning Herald Best Young Novelist of the Year
- 2021 winner Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) — The Matt Richell Award for New Writer
- Cabramatta, Fairfield area, Sydney Southwest, Sydney, New South Wales,
- 1990s