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Elevator in Sai Gon

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Translated by Nguyễn An Lý

A Vietnamese woman living in Paris travels back to Sai Gon for her estranged mother's funeral. Her brother had recently built a new house and staged a grotesquely lavish ceremony for their mother to inaugurate what was rumoured to be the first elevator in a private home in the country.

But shortly after the ceremony, in the middle of the night, their mother dies after mysteriously falling down the elevator shaft. Following the funeral, the daughter becomes increasingly fascinated with her family's history, and begins to investigate and track an enigmatic figure, Paul Polotsky, who emerges from her mother's notebook.

Like an amateur sleuth, she trails Polotsky through the streets of Paris, sneaking behind him as he goes about his usual routines. Meanwhile, she researches her mother's past zigzagging across France and Vietnam trying to find clues to the spiralling, deepening questions her mother left behind unanswered and perhaps unanswerable.


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An <em>anti-racist</em> social enterprise bookstore specialising in BIPOC books.
About Amplify Bookstore

An anti-racist social enterprise bookstore specialising in BIPOC books.

Only about 11% of books published are by BIPOC authors — so unless you specifically seek out books by BIPOC authors, you aren't likely to find very many of them organically. At Amplify, BIPOC authors are highlighted and celebrated. Here, they don't have to fight to be seen, and you don't have to fight to find them.

We hope that in our shop, you can discover a new favourite read, find stories that speak uniquely to you, learn about a culture outside your own (or more about your own histories), and gain a better understanding of the systems that connect us all.

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I’ve discovered so many new-to-me authors and the owners are so generous in their recommendations. Don’t follow the trends, set them! - let Amplify broaden your reading and sharpen your mind.

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Within are thoughtfully curated books, and I was amazed to see a great diversity of authors. The atmosphere is cosy, calm and relaxed – just the perfect way to start my Sunday!

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I loved how inclusive this space was, there were dyslexia friendly books and a space for books about queer love, a bit of something for everyone.

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