Inside Out And Back Again By Thanna Lai

Refugees are some of the strongest people in the world, but why? Some may say it’s because they have gone through a lot to get to where they are, others may say it’s because they have hope. The answer is all of that. In one book “Inside Out and Back Again” by Thanna Lai, we have a Vietnamese family in Saigon as war breaks out. The book is very descriptive on what a family has to go through during those tough times. The main character, named Ha, is an only girl in a family of 3 older brothers and a loving mother. At the time of the war in 1975 there was a big war against the Vietnamese and the Communists. With war going on in their main home land and the war getting closer, Ha’s mother makes the bold decision to take the family on a boat which is harboring refugees. Yet, how many people actually make this decision? In an article “Refugees: Who, Where, Why” that as of June, 2016 there are 65.3 Million refugees around the globe (npr). Ha has a wonderful family she thinks, but,
Then it was taken to extreme, “A brick shatters the front window, landing on our dinner table, along with a note.” (162) Showing that just because they are different they are harassed and bullied. Now, with “Refugees: Who, Where, Why” it says that 65.3 Million refugees are around the world and some are treated like this. But Ha and her family have been through so much, they aren’t going to let some neighbors ruin their perfect life. Things may have gotten bad, so Ha and Brother Quang set up a secret place to get picked up. After school one day, she was being chased after school being mocked by one of the kids, she met up with brother and left. “I sit side saddle holding onto the handlebar. The edges of our hand touch.” (154) Showing that even though they fight, they still love each other as family and will protect one