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For all the ten years of her life, Hà has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, the warmth of her friends close by ... and the beauty of her very own papaya tree.
But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Hà and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope. In America, Hà discovers the foreign world of Alabama: the coldness of its strangers, the dullness of its food, the strange shape of its landscape ... and the strength of her very own family.
This is the moving story of one girl's year of change, dreams, grief, and healing as she journeys from one country to another, one life to the next.
"Open this book, read it slowly to savor the delicious language. Before closing it, go back to the beginning, this time to let the story of ten-year-old Hà and the year she escaped from South Vietnam, 1975, leaving behind the world she knew and loved, sink in. Don't close the covers yet. Read it again to notice how perfect the thin line of the prose itself mirrors the thin line that Hà walks during that year.
This is a book that asks the reader to be careful, to pay attention, to sigh at the end."—Kathi Appelt, bestselling author of the Newbery Honor Book THE UNDERNEATH
National Book Award
Newbery Honor Book
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
April 1, 2012 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781464020988
- File size: 72110 KB
- Duration: 02:30:13
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Languages
- English
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Levels
- Lexile® Measure: 800
- Text Difficulty: 3-4
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Reviews
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Starred review from January 31, 2011
Narrating in sparse free-verse poems, 10-year-old Hà brings a strong, memorable voice to the immigrant experience as her family moves from war-torn South Vietnam to Alabama in 1975. First-time author Lai, who made the same journey with her family, divides her novel into four sections set in Vietnam, "At Sea," and the last two in Alabama. Lai gives insight into cultural and physical landscapes, as well as a finely honed portrait of Hà's family as they await word about Hà's POW father and face difficult choices (awaiting a sponsor family, "...Mother learns/ sponsors prefer those/ whose applications say ‘Christians.'/ Just like that/ Mother amends our faith,/ saying all beliefs/ are pretty much the same"). The taut portrayal of Hà's emotional life is especially poignant as she cycles from feeling smart in Vietnam to struggling in the States, and finally regains academic and social confidence. A series of poems about English grammar offer humor and a lens into the difficulties of adjusting to a new language and customs ("Whoever invented English/ should be bitten/ by a snake"). An incisive portrait of human resilience. Ages 8–12.
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