Explore the real-world places that appear in On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong. Each location on the map shows what happens there in the novel, the real history of the place, and what's there today. Featured locations include Park Street, Hartford Hospital, Goodwin Elementary School, Connecticut River, Tobacco Farm and 7 more.
Hartford's main Vietnamese corridor
Little Dog and his mother Rose walk this street lined with Vietnamese shops and restaurants. Here Rose buys fish sauce and rice paper, speaking in rapid Vietnamese with other immigrants. The street represents both connection to their heritage and the insular nature of their community, where Rose feels safe but also trapped by language barriers and economic limitations.
Park Street became Hartford's Vietnamese commercial district in the 1980s and 1990s as refugees from the Vietnam War settled in the area. The concentration of Asian businesses made it a cultural anchor for the immigrant community.
Park Street remains Hartford's Little Saigon, with Vietnamese restaurants, grocery stores, and businesses serving the community. The area continues to be a cultural center for Vietnamese-Americans in Connecticut.
Visit: Park Street Vietnamese District (historic site)
80 Seymour Street — Where Rose works as a nail technician
Rose works at a nail salon near the hospital, her hands cracked and stained from chemicals. Little Dog describes waiting for her after school, watching her bent over other women's feet, speaking broken English to customers who barely acknowledge her humanity. The hospital area represents the service economy that employs so many immigrants in Hartford.
Hartford Hospital, founded in 1854, has been a major employer in the city for over a century. The surrounding area developed into a medical district with various healthcare services and businesses catering to hospital workers and patients.
Hartford Hospital remains one of Connecticut's largest hospitals and a major employer. The surrounding area continues to house medical offices, pharmacies, and service businesses including nail salons serving the community.
Maple Avenue — Little Dog's school
At Goodwin Elementary, Little Dog struggles with English and faces racial taunts from other children. Mrs. Callahan, his teacher, becomes one of the first people to recognize his intelligence and love of language. Here he begins to find his voice through reading and writing, even as he feels alienated from his Vietnamese identity and his mother's world.
Goodwin Elementary School was built in the early 20th century to serve Hartford's North End neighborhood. It has educated generations of immigrant children, including waves of Puerto Rican, Vietnamese, and other newcomers to the city.
Goodwin Elementary continues to serve a diverse student population in Hartford's North End. The school focuses on supporting English language learners and students from immigrant families.
Along Riverside Park — Site of reflection and memory
Little Dog walks along the Connecticut River when he needs to think and process his experiences. The river becomes a metaphor for the flow of memory and trauma through generations. Here he reflects on his family's journey from Vietnam, his own sexual awakening, and the weight of stories passed down from his grandmother Lan.
The Connecticut River has been Hartford's lifeline since colonial times, serving as a major transportation route and industrial corridor. The riverfront was heavily industrialized but has undergone revitalization efforts in recent decades.
Riverside Park and the Connecticut River Heritage Trail provide public access to the riverfront. The area offers walking paths, green space, and views of the river that flows through the heart of Connecticut.
Visit: Riverside Park (park)
Rural Connecticut — Summer work with Trevor
During summers, Little Dog works on tobacco farms in rural Connecticut alongside Trevor, a white working-class boy who becomes his first love and sexual partner. Under the broad tobacco leaves, they share intimate moments while also confronting the harsh realities of agricultural labor. Trevor's addiction to painkillers and their complex relationship unfolds in these fields.
Connecticut's tobacco farms have operated since colonial times, with Connecticut broadleaf tobacco prized for cigar wrappers. The industry employed thousands of seasonal workers, including many immigrants and young people from urban areas.
Connecticut's tobacco industry has declined significantly, with only a few farms still operating. Some former tobacco farms have been converted to other agricultural uses or preserved as open space.
Where Rose and Little Dog shop for American goods
Rose brings Little Dog to this suburban shopping center, where she marvels at American abundance while also feeling overwhelmed by choice and her limited English. Little Dog observes his mother's struggle to navigate this consumer landscape, watching her count money carefully and communicate through gestures when words fail her.
West Hartford's shopping districts developed in the mid-20th century as suburban retail centers serving the growing middle class. These shopping areas represented the American dream that many immigrants aspired to reach.
West Hartford remains an affluent suburb with thriving retail districts. The area continues to attract shoppers from throughout the Hartford region with its mix of chain stores and local businesses.
Visit: West Hartford Center (landmark)
North End Hartford — Grandmother's stories and trauma
In his grandmother Lan's small apartment, Little Dog listens to her stories of surviving the Vietnam War, including her work in American military bases and the trauma she carries. Lan speaks of a different time and place, her memories mixing with present reality as dementia sets in. Her apartment holds the family's history and secrets.
Hartford's North End became home to many Vietnamese refugees in the 1980s due to affordable housing and established social services. Multi-family homes and apartments in this area housed extended families trying to rebuild their lives.
Hartford's North End continues to be home to diverse immigrant communities. The neighborhood has seen some revitalization efforts while maintaining its role as an affordable area for newcomers to the city.
500 Main Street — Little Dog's sanctuary of books
The Hartford Public Library becomes Little Dog's refuge where he discovers literature and begins to understand the power of language. Here he reads voraciously, finding authors who speak to his experience of displacement and identity. The library represents education and possibility beyond his family's limited English.
The Hartford Public Library was founded in 1774 and has served as an educational resource for the city's diverse population for centuries. The main library downtown has been a gathering place for readers and students from all backgrounds.
Hartford Public Library continues to serve the community with books, programs, and resources in multiple languages. The library offers services specifically for immigrants and English language learners.
Visit: Hartford Public Library (library)
Downtown Hartford — Moments of peace in the city
Little Dog walks through Bushnell Park when he needs space to think about his identity, his relationship with Trevor, and his family's expectations. The park's carousel becomes a symbol of childhood innocence lost, as he grapples with growing up too fast in a world that demands adult understanding of complex traumas.
Bushnell Park, designed by Jacob Weidenmann, opened in 1868 as America's first publicly funded park. The park has served as Hartford's green heart for over 150 years, providing respite for residents of all backgrounds.
Bushnell Park remains downtown Hartford's premier green space, featuring walking paths, the historic carousel, and the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch. The park hosts community events and provides a peaceful escape in the urban center.
Visit: Bushnell Park (park)
Highway connecting Hartford to rural Connecticut
Little Dog travels I-84 to reach the tobacco farms where he works with Trevor. The highway represents the divide between urban Hartford and rural Connecticut, between his Vietnamese immigrant community and the white working-class world he enters through his relationship with Trevor. These drives become journeys between different versions of himself.
Interstate 84 was completed through Connecticut in the 1960s, connecting Hartford to New York and Massachusetts. The highway facilitated suburban development while also dividing urban neighborhoods during its construction.
I-84 remains a major transportation corridor through Connecticut, carrying commuters and travelers between Hartford and surrounding areas. The highway continues to define the geography of greater Hartford.
Franklin Avenue — Cultural and spiritual center
Little Dog accompanies his mother and grandmother to the Buddhist temple, where the Vietnamese community gathers for religious ceremonies and cultural events. Here he observes the attempts to preserve tradition in America while also witnessing the generational differences in how religion and culture are practiced and understood.
Vietnamese Buddhist temples were established in Hartford in the 1980s as the refugee community grew. These temples served not only religious needs but also as community centers preserving Vietnamese culture and language.
The Vietnamese Buddhist temple continues to serve Hartford's Vietnamese-American community, offering religious services, cultural education, and community gatherings that help maintain connections to Vietnamese heritage.
Visit: Chua Phap Hoa Temple (historic site)
One American Row — Hartford's modernist landmark
Little Dog sees this distinctive boat-shaped building as a symbol of Hartford's attempt at urban renewal and modernization. The building represents the American dream and corporate success that seems both accessible and impossibly distant from his family's immigrant experience. Its unique architecture stands out in Little Dog's mental map of the city.
The Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Building, completed in 1963, was designed by Harrison & Abramovitz as a symbol of Hartford's insurance industry dominance. The elliptical building became an iconic part of Hartford's skyline.
The building, now known as One American Row, continues to house offices in downtown Hartford. Its distinctive architecture remains a recognizable landmark and symbol of the city's mid-century modernist period.
More by Ocean Vuong: All Ocean Vuong books
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