Inside Out and Back Again: Inspired by the author's childhood experience of fleeing Vietnam after the Fall of Saigon and immigrating to Alabama, this coming-of-age debut novel told in verse has been celebrated for its touching child's-eye view of family and immigration. For all the ten years of her life, Hà has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, and the warmth of her friends close by. 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 . . . and the strength of her very own family.
Listen, Slowly: Twelve-year-old Mia's parents are sending her, along with her father, on a trip to Vietnam so she can learn more about her roots—and also help her grandmother figure out what really happened to Mia's grandfather during the Vietnam War. Since Mia barely knows the language or customs, she is desperately counting down the days until she can go back home. But the next few weeks are a life-changing experience. As time passes, Mia begins to have a change of heart, growing closer to her family and developing an understanding of a culture and an entire world which that she never really knew about.
Thanhhà Lại is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the National Book Award and Newbery Honor–winning Inside Out and Back Again; the celebrated Listen, Slowly; the teen novel Butterfly Yellow; and the picture book Hundred Years of Happiness. She was born in Việt Nam and now lives in New York.