SUNSHINE NAILS

A full cast of narrators brings this family drama debut to life. Debbie and Phil Tran, Vietnamese refugees who run their own nail salon in Toronto, are barely breaking even. Things worsen when a new high-end salon opens across the street and rents surge in their gentrifying neighborhood. Desperate to save their family business, they recruit their children and niece to help them undermine the competition. The perspectives of the chapters move among the various flawed Tran family members. The narrators' performances ensure that the characters are easy to distinguish, although some characters are less developed. The nuanced deliveries capture complex family dynamics and generational differences as the story explores themes of gentrification, the immigrant experience, and racism. V.T.M. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2023]