Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai

CONFLICT

RISING ACTION

CLIMAX

FALLING ACTION

RESOLUTION

The story begins on Tet, the Vietnamese New Year in 1975. Kim Hà lives in Saigon with her loving family: mother and older brothers Quang, Vû, and Khôi. Vietnam has been at war for decades but Saigon remains under the control of the South Vietnamese government for now. However, it is only a matter of time before the communist North Vietnamese take over.

Hà's father disappeared nine years ago on a mission for the South Vietnamese Navy. He is considered "missing in action." They miss their father terribly and Hà's mother has to support the family on her own. It is very difficult as the war makes everything scarce. With the impending siege of Saigon by the North Vietnamese, people have begun evacuating. Hà's family must decide whether to stay or try to flee.

La familia de H a toma la decisión difícil de huir. Deben dejar todo atrás excepto lo que puedan llevar en pequeñas mochilas. Abordan un barco de la Armada de Vietnam del Sur que se reutiliza para refugiados con cientos de personas más y navegan durante semanas con poca comida y agua. Saigón cae ante los norvietnamitas y Vietnam del Sur ya no existe. Afortunadamente llegan a los Estados Unidos, donde son acogidos por un generoso "vaquero" y su cruel esposa.

Hà's family start over in America. They face hateful racism from their neighbors. English is difficult to learn. Hà is bullied at school. Hà confides in her mother that she is miserable and wishes they could have stayed in Vietnam. Her family and a few new friends help Hà to stand up to the main bully, "Pink Boy". Brother Vû Lee arrives on his motorcycle and intimidates the boy.At school, things begin to change for the betterafter that.

Un día, cuando la madre de H a está en el trabajo, accidentalmente pierde su anillo de bodas. Fue el último vínculo que la familia tuvo con su padre. Siempre habían creído que de alguna manera regresaría, pero esta desgracia parece una señal para que la familia acepte su muerte y siga adelante. Juntos celebran una ceremonia fúnebre tradicional para él.

The story ends with the the family celebrating Tet again in 1976. In Vietnamese culture, everyone is one year older on Tet and it is a chance to ensure good fortune for the coming year. Hàprays for her father to find a safe passage to his final resting place, for each of her brothers and her mother, and that she "truly learns to fly-kick, not to kick anyone so much as to fly."