The Happiest Refugee

This is one of the best books I've read in ages.
I was a little put off by the title - thinking it might be a schmaltzy white-wash of a tale, but it's much better than that. The books tells the story of Anh Dos live - from the refugee boat journey from Vietnam when he was 3, through settlement and schooling in Australia, with his parents financial ups and downs (mostly downs) to his successful adult life as a comedian and public figure.
I laughed and I cried. But most of all I enjoyed the ride.

Ahn Do is an inspiration not only for succeeding under difficult circumstances but for loving people and not being the slightest bit ashamed for saying it and showing it. His humanity is the thing that stood out for me. This book is obviously not a polished piece of literature and I for one am glad about that because unlike many other memoirs this one rings true, open and honest. An easy read and one I would recommend to everyone.

What a great book to start the year with! Anh Do’s infectious optimism throughout this memoir put us all at our happiest. We loved his positive nature and willingness to see the funny side of such an extraordinary life. The honesty in which he portrayed his family’s early days in their new country was a delight and we all felt anyone who had reservations about refugees would do well to read this book. In fact, some of us believe you wouldn’t be human if you were not moved by Do’s story. Some believe it was mostly a testament to his mother and father and we all found ourselves very interested in the whole Do clan. Cathy would have liked to hear more about Anh’s sister, and everyone found favour with his father’s philosophical show more view of time – ‘There are only two types of time … now and too late.’

The many tales, both humorous and heartbreaking, gave the book balance and Ann felt the book well written/edited with the tragic being offset by humour in just the right measure. Anh’s comedic talent definitely shines through in his writing …
we all had our favourites, such as the fish tanks, the old combie breakdown, the RSL gig and his mother’s roast pig dinner, so our discussion was mostly on the merry side recalling each of these anecdotes.
However, we did touch on some of the more serious aspects, such as the upheaval refugees and immigrants experience, how it effects childhood and of course the racism. We all wondered if the xenophobic traits that seem so focused on refugees today has always been there and what will it take to create a more welcoming and accepting Australia. All very important questions that Anh’s story was never meant to answer, but in our view certainly generated an essential conversation.

In closing, it is fair to say that we all got something from this book. Do’s conversational, light-hearted patter made this vital story a pure pleasure to read.
Do yourself a favour and pick it up soon! show less

“There are only two times. Now and too late.”

With humour, warmth and spirit, Anh Do shares his journey from a refugee boat fleeing Vietnam to a successful and well known comedian in Australia. The Happiest Refugee won multiple Australian book awards in 2011 and captured the heart of the nation.

When Anh was a small child, his family gambled everything in their desire to escape the crippling poverty in Vietnam on a barely seaworthy boat crowded with 40 others. Twice attacked by pirates and on the verge of starvation and dehydration, he and his family were rescued from the middle of the ocean, and via Malaysia, were granted refugee status in Australia. Ahn’s family were delighted with their new country, grateful for its kindness and show more undreamed of opportunities. In a series of anecdotes that are both funny and sad, Anh shares his family’s triumphs and failures as they make Australia their home. It is impossible not to admire their willingness to work hard, their love for family and respect for education. Today, the issue of ‘boat people’ is a political hot potato in Australia, Anh’s story puts a face on those nameless desperate souls who risk everything to cross the vast ocean.
I was surprised to discover the Anh qualified as a lawyer before taking a chance on a career in comedy, though it is startlingly common amongst male comedians in this country (i.e. Charlie Pickering, Shaun Micallef. Tony Wilson, Steve Vizard). This memoir supports Anh’s image as a decent, down to earth man who adores his family and believes in being his best, for himself and others.

The Happiest Refuge is an extraordinary story of hope, resilience and triumph in an ordinary man’s life. I was thoroughly entertained, fought back a tear or two and sighed happily as I turned the final page, though Anh has a lot of life yet to live. show less

Every now and then along comes a book which just restores your faith in life. Anh Do's THE HAPPIEST REFUGEE is one such book. Mind you, it will make you feel good, it will make you cry in a few places, it will really make you think about what it is to be a "refugee" and how we treat / react to current day boat people. Mostly though, this was a book that restores a bit of your faith in humanity.

Anh and his family escaped war torn Vietnam as boat people. They took a dangerous and harrowing journey including multiple raids by pirates (including death threats), dehydration, deaths on the boat and extreme circumstances before finally making it to Australia. They were grateful for their lives, and grateful for the kindness of people when they show more settled here (including the gift of clothes, even though Anh's brother Khoa spent time dressed as a little girl (and a very pretty little girl he made too). The book talks about the struggle to make a life and get ahead in a country that was so substantially different from where they came, a struggle complicated further by the breakdown in Anh's parents marriage. What really shines through in this book though is the sense of family and the care for family, extended family and friends that all members of Anh's circle showed for each other. Behind his family's generosity to others there's the ongoing struggle to survive with only his mother's work in a home based sewing job to support them.

What also shines through is the indomitable spirit, kindness, good humour and basic goodness of Anh himself. This is just a genuinely nice bloke, a quintessentially Aussie sort of a bloke in the end, that looks after his mother and his brother and sister, loves his wife and kids and has made a life in a country that took him in as a child refugee.

Anh's story means so very very much in these troubling times, when demonising and degrading refugees seems to be our default setting. Anh's emotional, uplifting, funny and very very touching memoir reminds us that doing the right thing can pay off in spades. show less

Australians probably know Anh Do as a comedian and/or the star of the movie Footy Legends. What they probably don’t know is how Anh got to be one of Australia’s truly funny blokes.

Anh and his family are from Vietnam and survived a harrowing boat journey (multiple raids by pirates, dehydration, loss of life) to get to Australia (via a refugee camp in Malaysia). Anh was only two at the time, but the story of the trip is edge-of-your-seat kind of stuff. When they finally made it to Australia, the Do family were so thankful for everything (they were given jeans- a sign of wealth in Vietnam) that when Anh’s little brother, Khoa, was mistaken for a girl and given a dress to wear, the family accepted it with pleasure. (From the photos, show more Khoa made a very cute little girl). It’s that thankfulness to the country that took them in that continues on as a feature of the story as well as the sense of family. Anh’s family often have extended family or friends come to stay with them as they get on their feet, despite the family working exceptionally hard on their sewing business. They were never too busy to help someone out, despite being poor themselves (Anh had to pretend he had lost or forgotten his schoolbooks- he simply couldn’t afford to buy them at all).

Anh’s story reminds us we need to be thankful for what he have- he is so kind, buying his mother a house or working to afford braces for his sister, who was ashamed about her smile. With the current media headlines about ‘boat people’, we need to remember that they have thoughts, feelings and can be a great asset to this country, like Anh and his family.

A great, funny, emotional memoir. Well done Anh. show less

What a great book to start the year with! Anh Do’s infectious optimism throughout this memoir put us all at our happiest. We loved his positive nature and willingness to see the funny side of such an extraordinary life. The honesty in which he portrayed his family’s early days in their new country was a delight and we all felt anyone who had reservations about refugees would do well to read this book. In fact, some of us believe you wouldn’t be human if you were not moved by Do’s story. Some believe it was mostly a testament to his mother and father and we all found ourselves very interested in the whole Do clan. Cathy would have liked to hear more about Anh’s sister, and everyone found favour with his father’s philosophical show more view of time – ‘There are only two types of time … now and too late.’

The many tales, both humorous and heartbreaking, gave the book balance and Ann felt the book well written/edited with the tragic being offset by humour in just the right measure. Anh’s comedic talent definitely shines through in his writing …
we all had our favourites, such as the fish tanks, the old combie breakdown, the RSL gig and his mother’s roast pig dinner, so our discussion was mostly on the merry side recalling each of these anecdotes.
However, we did touch on some of the more serious aspects, such as the upheaval refugees and immigrants experience, how it effects childhood and of course the racism. We all wondered if the xenophobic traits that seem so focused on refugees today has always been there and what will it take to create a more welcoming and accepting Australia. All very important questions that Anh’s story was never meant to answer, but in our view certainly generated an essential conversation.

In closing, it is fair to say that we all got something from this book. Do’s conversational, light-hearted patter made this vital story a pure pleasure to read.
Do yourself a favour and pick it up soon! show less