As a memoir, this starts out fairly typical. A daughter, now a mother, wondering who her parents were. But then it becomes a true story of her parents, and a history lesson on the tragedies and events of the Vietnam War. I ended up liking this graphic novel way more than expected. I was fascinated with the struggle and will to survive that some families and some individuals are forced to endure, and the true horror of war and the innocent (or not so innocent) victims. The art is so somber yet can be beautiful in places. By the end of the story, I felt like I knew her family and I knew the places they'd lived. It's a sorrowful but hopeful story. It's also timely--I couldn't help but relate their story to today's headlines of Syria and the refugee crisis. Different times but stories that are so sadly similar.

I really can't see how anyone can give this less than 5 stars. This book really opened my eyes even further to the struggles of Vietnamese refugees, and the graphic novel format is an excellent one to express it.

A simple yet heartfelt illustrated memoir about a young Vietnamese family immigrating from a war torn country to the United States. The story is interesting and touching; the art is also very stylish and impressive.

Thi Bui's debut graphic novel, "The Best We Could Do," surpasses other well-told refugees' tales by way of her honest exploration of how we are not only shaped by the way our parents raise us but also by the people, places, and events that shaped our parents themselves. On the cusp of creating her own family with the birth of her son, Bui turns her wondering gaze towards the life-defining decisions her parents made while growing in, and eventually escaping from, the chaos of the long years of war in their home country, Viet Nam.

Bui's strength is not only her insight into how her parents' youth shaped her experience as their daughter, but also in the delicacy of her writing and the artistry of her illustrations. Her writing includes many subtly delivered insights, such as her realization that the fear she felt of her father as a child "was only the long shadow of his own" childhood fears as he experienced death, destruction, and abandonment. Her illustrations effectively mix simple line drawings and delicate portraits, washed in earthy tones that may harken back to the red clay soil of her home.

I highly recommend this book to those who enjoy graphic novels, history, family memoirs focusing on parent-child relationships, coming of age stories and immigrant tales.

This is a stunning graphic novel about a family's experience coming to America from Vietnam, and also the relationship between mothers and daughters. I really liked the spare brushwork-like art, and how the relationships are slightly ambiguous.

One of the best graphic novels of the year, telling one family's story as they cope with the approach of the Vietnam War and eventually are forced to flee their home.

One family's journey from colonial Vietnam to current day America. The stories are too broad to fit into a single book, whereas none of them is compelling enough.

Ambitious epic, but mediocre drawing; characterization; and storytelling. Politically correct.

As far as graphic novels go I found this one interesting but less than compelling. Telling the story of the the author's life and those of her parents, this is a nice opportunity to learn a bit about Southeast Asian history. Not a bad read but I've read a lot better graphic novels than this one, which failed to compel me to consume it all in a single sitting.

As others have said an excellent read in comic book (or as they say graphic novel) style. Poignant and interesting and doable in 1-2 hours.