The Emperor of Gladness
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![](#/media/File:"The_Emperor_of_Gladness"_Ocean_Vuong_book_cover.jpg) | |
| Author | Ocean Vuong |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Literary fiction |
| Publisher | Penguin Press |
Publication date | May 13, 2025 |
| Pages | 416 |
| ISBN | 978-0593831878 |
The Emperor of Gladness is a 2025 novel by Vietnamese American writer Ocean Vuong. It was announced in April 2024 and released on May 13, 2025.[1][2] Penguin Press published the novel in the United States, and Jonathan Cape published it in the United Kingdom.[3]
The novel draws upon Vuong's real-life experiences in the service industry, as well as elder care. In writing it, Vuong specifically pushed back against the idea of writing a model minority narrative of rags to riches: "As I grew up in my family and my community, the most common thing—the best scenario—was someone works the same job for 30 years, drives the same car, lives in the same apartment. That's not failure. That's a decent life."[4]
Synopsis
The novel follows a 19-year-old boy named Hai who lives in East Gladness, a town in Connecticut. Right before he jumps off of a bridge to die by suicide, an old woman suffering from dementia, named Grazina, urges him to reconsider. From then on, Hai becomes Grazina's caretaker.