The Latehomecomer

The Latehomecomer A Hmong Family Memoir. ISBN 978-I-56689-208-7. Kao Kalia Yang, 2008. Ages 13 and up. Hmong refugees/Hmong American working class.

Synopsis
The Latehomcomer begins as the story of a family's journey through war torn Laos to the unwelcoming refugee camps of Thailand and further to a very foreign America that would eventually become home. It is in Thailand that a very brave girl makes her journey from the clouds where she will enter her family in constant search of self and a place to call home. She begins her story before her birth starting with the experiences of her parents and the experience of her grandmother - a beautifully spirited woman who made the survival of the family possible. The story continues in America where the author and her family struggle for acceptance and freedom from the lives they had left behind.

Discussion Topics
1. The Vietnam War
2. The Secret War
3. Geography of Laos and Thailand
4. The Hmong culture/traditions
5. The American Dream
6. What it means to be American
7. Arranged Marriages
8. Death
9. Finding ones voice

Critique

This is by far one of the best books I have ever read. It was almost as if I knew Yang. Her beautiful story of war, fear, courage motherhood, the struggle for self and home made me feel an emense range of emotions. She writes beautifully about the characters of her life. The reader can practically see the family as they make their way across the Mekong River to the unknown. The use of Yang's family photos further invites the reader to truly know her family experience.
Not only does this book teach us of the struggles one family faced, it educates us about a culture we may have never known and a one sided war that's history is kept a secret from us. It is a wonderful resource for the classroom. I wish it had been around when I was in high school. It has the ability to teach many lessons about self, life, death, family, history and home. I absolutely love this book!!!