As the weeks wind down on America's two decades of undeclared war on Afghanistan, attention is being paid to who is left behind and what their fates might be. That is especially true for anyone who was native/local but had in any way supported the occupying forces. As the early months of this military incursion unfolded, many of us were of an age to recognize patterns similar to the years of the Viet Nam war-not-a-war.
Our American veterans of Viet Nam were treated horribly upon their return home, only being shown some limited respect within recent years. What they witnessed and participated in while there is rarely part of public discussion. It is also true that the stories of lives of those who managed to escape after the final withdrawal are absent from most public platforms, especially picture books. My search, admittedly minimal, suggests that refugee stories about Latin America and Middle East refugees outnumber accounts of that Viet Nam era.
I'm pleased to say that some authentic voices from those Viet Nam experiences are now arriving on bookstore shelves. Here are three that I highly recommend and hope will fly off the shelves to the hands of readers of many ages, and pass on to the hands of others who want to share, and on and on.
ALWAYS WITH YOU is written by Ruth Vander Zee and illustrated by Ronald Himler. Inspired by a true story, four year old Kim is playing in a coconut grove when she witnesses the destruction of her village. She manages to locate her dying mother in the crater where their house once stood. I won't spoil the details of this story, because each and every page unfolds with intensity and strength that a synopsis would dilute. 
Eerdmanns, 2008
This, of the three titles, seems to conform most closely to familiar "stories" about lives and survival in Viet Nam, things that have been publicly shared in the past. In this case, Kim was the only one to survive, despite being seen and brutally struck in the head. In that one day she lost her mother, her village, most of her vision, and many memories, yet she survived. And she never forgot her mother's dying words.
This is a story of tragic proportions but finds saving grace in Kim's rescue by American soldiers, in the safe haven she found in a China Beach orphanage, and in her eventual relocation to the United States where she lives today. An author note provides a few facts about Kim's real life after those years, as well as brief information about the Viet Nam "War" and its eventual ending. This serious and realistic story is written with a relatively light touch and gentle text to offer reassurances from the first pages through to the last. Adults will "read" much more into it, but young ones will find consolation in the strength and optimism and trust of Kim, a child not unlike them, who found hope and love despite tragedy.
Orchard Press, 2021
Next is the picture book WISHES, written by Muon Thi Van and illustrated by Victo Ngai also drawn from the author's actual experiences. This story, too, emerged from actual events. The author has written a lyrical, minimal text in which, in only severity-five words, inanimate objects express single lines that reveal a wealth of emotion, tension, action, reaction, struggle, and resolution. As in:
"The night wished it was quieter.
The bag wished it was deeper.
... ...
The heart wished it was stronger."
This is one of those remarkably expressive and evocative books that could nearly have been wordless, and yet each word, each wish, enriches the illustrations with even deeper meaning. By using this approach the creative team is able to take modern-day children on a journey of escape and terror without traumatizing them. Questions will be asked, depending on the age of the reader, and parallels can be draw to present day "boat people" forced to leave behind homelands in order to preserve life. The power here is massive without being overwhelming. And the story itself matters, as do the questions that will arise.
Finally, ADRIFT AT SEA: A Vietnamese Boy's Story of Survival is written by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch with Tuan Ho and illustrated by Brian Deines. With opening and closing pages of captioned photos of Tuan Ho and his family, there is not doubt that the story of secrecy, dodging bullets, desperate drifting at sea, and eventual rescue by an American aircraft carrier are all the more breathtaking because they are true. End notes alongside those final photos clarify the who, what, where and when of this Viet Nam history, although thee are not enough words in the world to provide an answer to why. 
Pajama Press, 2021
This is a perfect nonfiction picture book to integrate language arts with social studies topics, and not just limited to studies of Viet Nam. The main text and vivid, expressive illustrations will entice readers of any age, making an intense and complex story accessible, even for learners who avoid challenging text for whatever reasons (sustaining attention, being English language learners, or facing challenges with fluency). The complexity of front and back matter invite further reading and research at every level, too, especially about the subject, Tuan Ho.
These three titles are timely reading as we live through distant but eerily similar circumstances in Afghanistan today. (There will be no boat refugees, since it is a landlocked country, but the need to escape is very real.) Young people are hearing references to this transition from a prolonged war to a nation left in threatened circumstances and filled with unpredictable outcomes. Looking back and discussing ways in which this occurred can lay groundwork for meaningful comparisons and inquiry.
I just read Wishes - beautiful and full of heart.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. A remarkably powerful way to engage every sense and element in their escape.
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