
What Hunger
$25.80
- Paperback
288 pages
- Release Date
24 November 2026
Summary
This is not a tale where the girl is running away from danger - instead, she is the danger.
It’s the summer before high school and Ronny Nguyen is too young for work and too old for cartoons. Instead, she spends her days falling asleep to trashy magazines on a plastic lawn chair in her small backyard. She’s a stark contrast to her older brother Tommy, her immigrant parents’ pride and joy. Ronny can’t bear to think about what it will be like when Tommy, with whom she’s…
Book Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780349125770 |
|---|---|
| ISBN-10: | 0349125775 |
| Author: | Catherine Dang |
| Publisher: | Little, Brown Book Group |
| Imprint: | Little, Brown |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Number of Pages: | 288 |
| Release Date: | 24 November 2026 |
| Dimensions: | 198mm x 126mm x 22mm |
You Can Find This Book In
What They're Saying
Critics Review
What Hunger is a beautifully woven coming-of-age story about loss, identity, and intergenerational trauma. Dang’s writing pulses with a simmering rage, and the novel’s bloodcurdling conclusion will leave readers with a lasting sense of satisfaction * Monika Kim, author of The Eyes Are the Best Part *
Raw, violent, tender, beautiful: Catherine Dang’s coming-of-age horror encapsulates both the savagery and fragility of teenage girlhood, like if Jennifer’s Body was elevated by a rich exploration of grief and a Vietnamese refugee family’s experiences in America after fleeing war. Dang’s darkly playful portrayal of cannibalism is vivid, funny, real - and a perfectly gruesome metaphor for female rage. It builds and boils, and the final twist had me cheering. * Ashley Winstead, USA Today-bestselling author of Midnight is the Darkest Hour *
A hypnotic blend between a touching coming of age story and visceral exploration of adolescent rage, What Hunger made me laugh, flinch, and cry. I couldn’t put it down. * E.K. Sathue, author of youthjuice *
Tender, bold and brutally honest, What Hunger follows a Vietnamese refugee family struggling with questions of identity and grief. Dang deftly balances a poignant coming of age story and a gripping portrayal of feminine power. A brilliant novel filled with heartbreak and suspense. * K.T. Nguyen, author of You Know What You Did *
Gut-wrenching and raw (in more ways than one), What Hunger lays bare the devastating impact of grief, and how traumas, both past and present, can collide, redefining one’s understanding of family, heritage, and identity. This utterly engrossing tale of female rage had me at page one, going from slow simmer to full boil in the most brutal and delicious of ways. * Robin Wasley, William C. Morris Award finalist for Dead Things Are Closer Than They Appear *
What Hunger is a raw portrayal of the violence that bubbles up inside us in the uncertainty of grief and adolescence. This book is as fierce, unpredictable, and tender as the teenage girl at its center * Puloma Ghosh, author of Mouth *
Dang keenly captures her narrator’s alienation and anger, and the intergenerational tale concludes with a powerful revelation about the parents’ unspoken trauma from the Vietnam War. This one hits hard. * Publishers Weekly, Starred Review *
Intense, visceral, and not to be missed. * Booklist, Starred Review *
Brutal and poignant; Dang writes beautifully about the complexity of adolescence and generational trauma. * Kirkus Reviews *
About The Author
Catherine Dang
Catherine Dang is the author of the novels Nice Girls and What Hunger. A graduate of the University of Minnesota, she currently resides in Brooklyn.
Returns
This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.




