Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin

Cecile Pin’s timely debut novel explores the difficulty of telling refugee stories in a culture that has largely decided they must be either inspiring or horrific, rather than merely human. Wandering Souls tells the story of Anh, Thanh and Minh – siblings who escape war-torn Vietnam ahead of their family, only to discover after they arrive at their Hong Kong refugee camp that their parents and siblings have been murdered en-route. Anh, Thanh and Minh are then granted asylum in Thatcher’s Britain, a deeply racist country in the midst of an unemployment crisis. In this hostile environment, the siblings struggle to make a life for themselves, with Anh putting her own hopes and dreams aside to take care of her younger brothers.

Pin interweaves this main story with the voice of the siblings’ baby brother Dao, watching over them from the afterlife; as well as the workings of a fictionalised 'author' who gives us insight into the process of writing the story itself. Pin seems to feel most at home with the 'author', and indeed these sections of the book stand out in their authenticity and energy. In contrast, the main narrative sometimes lacks weight, with loosely sketched characters that are not quite believable. Despite this, Wandering Souls presents a piercing insight into the refugee experience, and reminds us that the UK's present refugee policies have a long and disturbing history. 

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Fourth Estate, 2 Mar