Inside Out & Back Again tells the story of a ten year old girl, Há and her family’s journey from Vietnam to Alabama. Set in Vietnam after the American troops leave, the story picks up as the conflict in the country increases. The story begins as Há’s friends and neighbors start fleeing the country via cruise ships to escape the war, and famine begins to strike the remaining Vietnamese. As the Communist presence in the country increases and poverty and hunger begin to hit an all-time high, Há’s family soon finds themselves forced to flee Saigon as well. Told from Há’s point of view and written as a series of poems, Inside Out & Back Again introduces readers to a family torn apart by war and the struggles they face as they are forced to find refuge in a foreign country that bears little similarity to their own. Há’s father, a member of the Vietnamese navy, had been missing since Há was a baby, leaving his wife to care for Há and her three older brothers and determine the fate of her family on her own.
Inside Out & Back Again is a story that showcases the strength of family in the face of strife and the power that love can have in times of conflict. It also reminds readers of the difficulties of growing up, especially when navigating a culture that’s completely different from your own. Based on the author’s own experiences, Inside Out & Back Again is a story I found to be especially poignant, powerful, and real. The poetry is moving and well-written, adding to the personal tone of the story and allowing readers a glimpse into the mind of Há as she learns the culture and language of the United States.
I enjoyed this book thoroughly and would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking to read something about this time period or from a multicultural perspective. As someone who has only ever learned about the Vietnam War from the American perspective – and briefly – it was interesting to be immersed in the world of Vietnam after the Americans left and see what the lives of the Vietnamese were like as a result and the struggles they continued to face after leaving their war-torn country. I would also recommend this book to anyone who appreciates this poetic style of writing. I’ve maybe read one or two other books that followed this style, and I don’t remember either of them being as powerful as this one. Because it is told in such a poem-based fashion, this book is a quick read that is sure to move readers from beginning to end. Five stars.
Inside Out & Back Again is a story that showcases the strength of family in the face of strife and the power that love can have in times of conflict. It also reminds readers of the difficulties of growing up, especially when navigating a culture that’s completely different from your own. Based on the author’s own experiences, Inside Out & Back Again is a story I found to be especially poignant, powerful, and real. The poetry is moving and well-written, adding to the personal tone of the story and allowing readers a glimpse into the mind of Há as she learns the culture and language of the United States.
I enjoyed this book thoroughly and would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking to read something about this time period or from a multicultural perspective. As someone who has only ever learned about the Vietnam War from the American perspective – and briefly – it was interesting to be immersed in the world of Vietnam after the Americans left and see what the lives of the Vietnamese were like as a result and the struggles they continued to face after leaving their war-torn country. I would also recommend this book to anyone who appreciates this poetic style of writing. I’ve maybe read one or two other books that followed this style, and I don’t remember either of them being as powerful as this one. Because it is told in such a poem-based fashion, this book is a quick read that is sure to move readers from beginning to end. Five stars.